My Naga Knight
by Oreana Galena
Summary: A snake demon, Jin the Wind Master , falls for a young farm girl in the medieval times. JinXOC
1. Chapter 1

**_Author's Notes_**: Okay, this is going to be slightly different—I am going to be taking a regular, well known anime character from YYH and morph him a smidge outward wise. I was tired of the same old stuff I do so I came up with this story—different time, different scenario (though it may remind you of The Little Mermaid), and a character that's gone from a wind demon to a snake demon.

Yeah, you heard that right—I drew an image awhile ago on my DA account of Jin the Wind Master with a lower part of a snake and I decided to create a story after that. So just keep in mind that it's still Jin just—he's half snake now. XP if you want the better view, look at my profile and click on my DA page to see the image.

**_Description_**: A snake demon (Jin the Wind Master) falls for a young farm girl in the medieval times. (**JinXOC**) (**NC-17 but will be edited here due to content.**)

**_Disclaimer_**: Yu Yu Hakusho was created by Yoshihiro Togashi and **NOT ME**! However, Neda and Blythe and any other creations **they** spawn (as in giving birth) are copywrite to me and I would love for it to stay that way. Any places or names created are made by me and to stay that way, as are any other minor or major unknown characters.

**_Musical Inspiration_**: "Poison" – Groove Coverage

"Epona (Lon Lon Ranch Theme)" – Koji Kondo

"Aquarius" – Within Temptation

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It was a new summer day as the rooster announced it early in the morning on the Cormac Farm. Hearing the sounds of the morning and smelling the breakfast her mother was making downstairs, little Blythe got up out of bed and hurried out her door to head down the steps and to the kitchen and eating area.

Hearing the patter of little, bare feet tapping against the woodened floor caused Pearl Cormac, Blythe's mother, to look over her shoulder from the stove to see her oldest daughter making it in time for breakfast. "Hi, Blythe," she replied cheerfully being the early bird type. She was 5'8 at most in height and had wavy, shoulder length red hair with hazel eyes. Mrs. Cormac was a fairly strong woman since she had to help her husband around the farm when their daughters weren't old enough to do so. Bringing the milk and rest of the bacon to the table that already had everything else upon it for a morning meal she smiled to her daughter as she took her white apron off. "So, where is your sister? Is she still sleeping in?"

"I think so," answered the fifteen year old girl. Tying back her mid-back reddish, brown hair, she grabbed onto her fork and started to dig into her breakfast.

"I swear, that girl," Pearl muttered, placing her hands on her slender hips. "Eat your breakfast and I will go get her." Placing her apron on her side of the circular table that had a square cloth hanging over it with a beautifully woven pattern within it consisting of golds, blues, browns, reds, and different types of greens, Pearl headed up the stairs calling out to her daughter. "Neda. Neda!"

Neda was attempting to stay asleep though the crowing of the rooster just outside of her window was really irritating her to the point of no return. Grabbing her pillow, she used it to cover up her light brown hair and her tanned ears hoping that the sounds would cease and she could get more sleep. But her wish was not to be granted as Pearl hurried into her ten year old daughter's room that she shared with sister to shake her awake.

"Wake up, Neda," Pearl insisted as she pulled the pillow off of her daughter's head before working on the covers. "Get up and come downstairs to eat breakfast or you can starve the rest of the day."

That was always her threat over her daughter whenever she wanted to sleep late and being Neda had a bottomless pit for a storm, she groaned and eventually hauled herself up and to her feet. "Okay, mama," Neda yawned with a bit of a whine, her shoulder length light brown hair a complete mess from the night's rest.

"Come downstairs and eat," Pearl insisted before heading back to the door. "It is getting cold and you'll need your strength to help your father and sister about the farm for a little while."

Neda sat on her bedside for a moment, letting her mother leave her in peace a moment before sighing a bit to herself since she detested working. She enjoyed working on the horses but not milking the cows or tending to the chickens. Knowing that her mother hated to ask twice, Neda got to her feet and helped herself out in the small U shaped hallway upstairs before getting to the stairway and heading down into the kitchen. Making it to the table, Neda sat down and put what she wanted on her plate before her father came through the door.

"Hi, Pearl," Damon replied, kissing his wife on her cheek before saying hi to his two girls and then taking his seat at the table. He was a strong and taller male with dark brown hair that rested about his cheek at most. His eyes were the most enchanting green and it was that very feature that drew Pearl to Damon. "I took a look in the barn and Stella is about to give birth to her little baby." He was referring to a white and brown spotted mare that was pregnant and had been nearing her time to give birth now.

"Is that so?" Pearl replied in a bit of joy before taking her own place at the table to eat. "Well, I am sure that will be a joy when she finally births."

"Can I have her baby when it comes out?" Neda eventually chimed in to ask. She was the only one in the family that didn't have her own horse, but the reason for her not having one was always the same.

"Neda, you are too young to take care of one," her father replied sternly though hating to break his daughter's heart.

Putting down her fork for a moment to pout, Neda looked at her father and mother knowing they were the only ones who felt this strongly against it. "But everyone else has a horse—I am ten years old, soon to be eleven in a couple of days so I don't see why I am too young."

Pearl and Damon both put on their 'stop that' look, not wishing for the conversation to escalate into a fight before the day had even begun. The look on their face said it all and Neda eventually looked back down at her plate without another word on the matter since she knew it would get her nowhere with how hardheaded the family was at times.

"I also took a look at our cows," Damon continued, after drinking some of his milk. "And I saw that some are missing again. Those damn snake monsters have been sneaking into our barn again and eating our cows once more."

"Watch your language," Pearl hissed softly before working on finishing up her own breakfast. "I don't know how they keep getting in there when we continue to lock up the barn doors."

"They are snake demons," Damon laughed sourly before finishing his breakfast and wiping his mouth with his napkin. "They break down the stupid doors and the chains I put on them. I guess I need to put up traps of some kind around the barn from now on. The last thing I want is them killing off our only food supply."

Damon was referring to the demons and creatures that lurked out beyond the territory of the castle market and around their barn area. It got worse around night fall and some times the meat eating demons would surface to raid their barn. Neda at times wished they lived in the market area that was surrounded by the large, cobble stoned walls since she feared being eaten alive by one of the monsters nearby, but her father and mother promised they would protect her and that notion settled her a little bit.

When Neda finished her chores after breakfast, she took her paper and writing utensil and headed a bit beyond the house to find a place to sit and draw. Making her way to a large oak tree that was quite comfortable to be near, Neda sat down before it to doodle upon the paper she brought with her as well as watch the passerby's that might happen by on the dirt road that wasn't too far away.

Neda never really thought herself as a wonderful artist and even her older sister told her she needed a bit more work just to tease her, but it bothered her little since her artwork helped her get her ideas and feelings out on paper. Shifting her eyes down to the east where the castle of Eytheria was, Neda sighed a bit since she still longed to live behind those walls where most people were. She always felt lonely with it just being her sister and her parents and she wished to be where most of the citizens were. Sighing a bit to herself, Neda looked back at the image she started sketching in front of her before continuing to work on it to try and make it look better.

--

The snake demons didn't care about being seen whether at night or during the day. Since it was traffic time for goods to be passed to and from land to land, they waited and slithered near the dirt roads that were surrounded by thick woods and not out in the grassy plane area around Eytheria since it was easier to catch the people off guard when hiding in the forest. A group of three of them slinked about the path beside them, causing not much of a sound except for the small talk that was passed from one to the other.

"These roads have been awfully quiet for awhile now," a male snake remarked with scales of black, white, and gray. He had dark skin himself and black hair that was short and to his neck though his bangs up front that were to the side reached down to his chin. His slit pupils rested through his golden eyes as he looked over at the snake demon he saw as the leader.

"Be patient, Finlay," the other snake male almost ordered as they continued down the outside of the dirt road before stopping a moment to wait under the canopy of the woods. This snake demon was a bit tanned skinned as his long, braided dark brown hair slipped down to his lower back. His scales complimented his skin tone as they consisted of browns of many different shades and a bit of black while his red eyes glared out beyond a bit of his unevenly cut side bangs that flowed a bit over his eyes. "It's only a little past the morning hours and one could be along soon enough. Just enjoy the sun for the time being." Slithering towards a nearby bolder, the snake demon crossed his arms over the rock before resting his chin in the center of his overlapped arms to try and relax for a moment.

The albino male in their group eventually caught up to them as his scales were that of an albino python and his skin and neck length hair with bangs that raked over his forehead were those of an albino looking human. His eyes were the brightest, piercing of blue and he held two curved under horns that looked like that of a ram's spouting from his skull. "I sure hope you're right, Dustin, for I am hungry. Those cows hardly sufficed last night."

"They would have, Aland," Dustin growled through his clutched teeth, "if Jin didn't eat most of them."

"Speaking of him—where is he?" Aland wondered aloud, looking for the fourth snake demon that was supposed to have accompanied them to find another was missing in action as well. "And where is Touya?"

Dustin turned from the rock he was leaning against to look for the other demons that were supposed to be with them, only to find none but the three there. Furrowing his brow into anger, Dustin couldn't help but be very vocal about the disobedient snake demon, "**JIN**!"

--

The opened grassy planes that covered a good bit of Eytheria were a dangerous place for most demons to be seen around in the morning and afternoon due to knights sometimes passing by or any other human that wielded a weapon, but that didn't stop the childlike and rebellious snake demon known as Jin. Sliding his full grown, python length body that had dark red scales with a lighter, pink tinted underbody along the grassy surface, he kept a small book under his arm with a brown leather cover that had the word "Diary" imprinted on the front.

His partner kept up slightly beside him with the scales of dark sea blue and an under side of a lighter blue that looked almost white. His narrow eyes gazed about the land before them, seeing the walls of Eytheria far away, the wiser snake demon looked to his partner, "Are you sure we should be out here, Jin? Dustin will be furious with us again for sneaking off without his permission."

"Forget about him, Touya," Jin insisted as he found an area near a few stray trees to lie down and enjoy the sun for a moment before opening his diary to doodle and write within it. "All he does is lecture us. He's a big blow hard."

Touya watched as Jin curled about his lower part of his snake body in attempts to relax for the day allow the sun above to warm him up a little. He preferred it out there in the plane where most of the freedom was compared to the dark woods where they usually stayed until nightfall to go out and sneak from the barn that was close to their wooded home. The redheaded snake demon carried that diary with him everywhere he went and didn't let anyone look into it, not even Touya, the demon he trusted far beyond that of any others he associated with.

Looking out beyond his four aqua colored bangs and the slightly raised hill they were resting on, the light blue haired snake demon, who was smaller than his partner, couldn't help but ponder on the castle that was in the distance. "What do you expect is beyond those walls?"

The indigo eyes of the red snake demon looked up beyond his equally fiery hair that dangled slightly within his face as Jin gazed at the large walls beyond them that was miles away. "I don't know," he answered honestly though wondered the same thing. "I wish I did, but I don't." Truth be known, every demon wondered what was beyond those walls and that was why some were accused by humans of attacking the wall and were killed by the guards at the drawbridge that lead into the market place if any miraculously got over. Jin would often at night get close enough to look up at the drawbridge that was raised to keep demons out when they prowled at night but he never thought of getting inside though there was a way about the drawbridge area for larger demons such as the snake demons.

Slithering his blue scales over Jin's red for a moment to get to the other side of him, Touya looked out at the dirt road that was just a ways away from them to see someone coming from the market area by horse. Even if it was just a female with a lighter tint of red hair compared to Jin's, he was still on edge and watching the woman closely since even some females were known to attack demons.

As Pearl passed by the two snake demons on her coal black stallion, she stared long and hard at them as if cursing them with her glance but not doing anything beyond that while heading back to the farm. Pearl knew better than to start something with two snake demons that were just relaxing from the look of it. If one was ever attacked and harmed, they would come back with an angry wrath and seek it on the attacker for taking out one of their own. But there were times demons weren't in the mood for a fight and were just lazing about and most times, people respected it and left them be, while others, like the Eytheria Knights, would attack to slay down one less monster in the world.

"Well that was a deadly glare," Touya retorted once the stallion was further away from them so the woman wouldn't hear. Looking back at his writing friend who caught it as well, he contorted his face slightly, "I wonder what for."

"I guess from the cows we ate last night," Jin answered, looking up at the blue scaled snake demon. "She works at that farm we raid every night."

"It's the only thing close by so we don't starve," Touya said in their defense though to the wrong person.

Jin could only offer a shrug as he continued writing away in his diary though his pointed ears could hear his friend's retort. "Sadly, she doesn't know that and probably thinks of us as monsters."

Before another word could be shared between the two, Dustin showed up with Aland and Finlay following up behind him. "There you two are!"

Touya looked over at the oncoming snake demons, not saying a word while Jin slightly sighed in disappointment at being found by Dustin, though he knew it wouldn't be difficult concerning the area he was in. Turning over onto his side for a moment to look at them, Jin saw the lead snake demon was none too pleased with them.

"What do you think you are doing out here in the open like this?" Dustin demanded to know, hissing on every word that escaped his mouth since he was furious at the two disobeying him for the Lord only knows what time. "You could both be easily killed if you're not careful!" Dustin was by standards the guardian of his group and was more like the overprotective father that children could never understand. While he occasionally got onto Touya and Jin about little things that seemed petty, he also got onto them about other things that worried him when it came to the careless duo that wondered into his group without a place to stay beyond one another's side.

Closing his diary, Jin eventually erected himself on his snake body so that the two were standing eye to eye. "I was just enjoying the sun for a moment is all, Dustin. Nothing happened. Not even that farm woman did anything to me when she passed just a moment ago."

"Be damn grateful then," the semi-dark skinned snake demon hissed. "Now come on. We have other things to do for what is left of the morning."

Looking over at Touya with a shrug, Jin followed after them back towards the woods which was at least awhile or so away from them.

--

Neda still had her back to the oak tree she sat before late that afternoon as she continued to doodle and write until her father's voice beckoned to her from not too far away. "Neda, come here quickly!"

He seemed to sound a bit winded and yet excited at the same time, prompting Neda to close her sketch book and get to her feet. Appearing beside the tree she was in front of, Neda called back to her father, "What is it, dad?"

"It's Stella," Damon announced, waving her over from where he stood near the barn doors. "Come quickly are you may miss it!"

Neda had seen many creatures in their barn give birth so this wasn't anything new to her as she hurried to her father's side to witness the mare giving birth to her baby. Managing to get to her father's side in time, Neda hurried into the stable with him to watch at a respectable distance of the mare giving birth for the first time in awhile.

In the end, the baby came out with a black body with white socks and white mane and tail that looked a bit gray at the moment. Neda and the others watched as the new mare could barely stand on her wobbly legs at first as the mother worked on cleaning her off.

Blythe squatted above the straw in the stall they all watched from as she eyed the little mare that was a new addition to their family with a smile. "What should we call her?" Blythe asked her father.

"I don't know," Damon admitted as he looked at the new addition as well from a distance that would be okay for the mother. "We'll just have to think on it until the morning, eh? It is getting late and I want you two in the house."

"But—," Neda began in protest since she wanted to stay a bit to take care of the new mare that was to be raised in their barn.

"No," growled the father sternly concerning the hour. "It is late and I don't want you two out at this time of night. Now go inside where it is safe." Around seven o'clock it was always considered late and the hour where demons would arise to cause havoc wherever they could. The last thing Damon wanted was one of his daughter's to get caught in such a thing. "I will be here tending to the baby and the mother for awhile, so tell your mother that when you go inside."

"Yes, papa," Blythe replied on both their behalf since Neda was too pouty to bother. Pressing her hand to her younger sister's back, Blythe guided her out of the barn and towards the house for the night.

Since it was the night hour and it was swiftly approaching time for dinner, the five snake demons slithered silently about the farm area, watching as the girls headed for the house. "Good," Finlay replied silently as the rising moon outlined his body, "the humans are going to bed."

"Wait," Dustin ordered with a slight raise of his hand from where he was peeking out just beyond the large tree Neda was at earlier. "Wait until the candles in the windowsills are blown out, and then we charge in."

It was a known fact that once the candles they had lit in the windowsills blew off either on their own or by the humans themselves and weren't relit for a moment or so, they had all gone to sleep. So this left the snake demons to wait and watch the windows for awhile until some of the candles were blown out on the west side of the house where they waited.

Neda brushed her hair for the night before putting her brush away and looking out the window she slept by to sneak a peek at the barn. "I wish I could get my own horse," she pouted mostly to herself though her sister couldn't help but overhear.

"Mom and dad already told you why you cannot have one," Blythe reminded her sister while she read from the book she bought from the market place. She always read when there was nothing else to do with the day coming to a close or she spoke to her sister if there was much to talk about but there never was. "Why don't you just wait till later? The horses will always be here."

Sighing forlornly, Neda eventually nodded though it wasn't the answer she was looking for. Grabbing the candle that was her responsibility, she took it from where it rested on the windowsill and blew it out for the night.

When Pearl eventually blew out the ones downstairs so she could head to bed, the snakes looked at Dustin to hear him whisper moments later, "Let's go!"

The five snakes split up quickly and headed for the barn area that had the cows and horses kept inside. Aland took the doors while the others waited since he was the best at getting them taken care of. Though, this time, he was surprised to see that they were unlocked. Cocking a thin white brow at his group, he could only question why it would be so with his expressions.

"Forget about it," Finlay begged quietly, edging him onward with the tip of his tail embedding gently into Aland's back. "Let's go and get what we need. I am starving!"

With the barn doors soon opened, the five snake demons slithered inside quietly and quickly to look for the creature that could serve as their dinner whether it was a horse or a cow being either one sated them. Of course, the creatures in the barn could hear them slipping across the straw and see them in the moonlight, causing the horses to spook easily and create a bit of a fuss.

Hearing the black stallion that belonged to Pearl and was Stella's mate causing a big commotion over his arrival, Jin bared his sharp demonic fangs and attacked the horse's neck before using his python like body to embrace the beast and make it hold still since he himself was hungry as well and didn't want to wait.

Hearing the stallion's awkward sounds from the stall he was within, Damon quickly got to his feet with a pitchfork in one hand and a lantern in the other since that was all he had at the moment. He didn't see the other snakes that were further in the back attacking some more of their cows though he could hear the stallion that was putting up a fight against the crimson haired snake demon which brought him to the horse's stall. Witnessing Jin attempting to suffocate the horse and break its bones with a tight squeeze of its reptilian body, Damon growled at the creature he viewed as a beast. "You damn, monster!" Rearing back the pitchfork he held, Damon embedded it into Jin's back since it was the thing visible to him at the moment.

Feeling the horrific pain jab into his lower back, Jin threw back his head and cried out in sudden pain before turning his attention quickly to the male that dared assault him. Unlatching his serpent body from the in pain black stallion, he used it to get rid of the weapon the farmer used before embracing the human's body with his own. "Don't move, for I promise I am not here to hurt you," Jin replied as calmly as possible with his tail wrapped about the mouth of the man so he couldn't call for help while the rest of him kept Damon's arms and legs in check. He didn't squeeze tight enough to kill the man for Jin knew his own strength in his serpent half and handled it well. "I am just here for something to eat and I will leave!"

Damon couldn't help but retaliate as he jerked about a bit in attempts to get free from the snake demon that bonded him well with his demonic body. But as he tried, Damon accidentally dropped the lantern he held since he needed both his hands to get free, which caused the glass to break and the fire of the candle to attack the straw quickly that was beneath the two.

Seeing the flames suddenly shoot up caused Jin to widen his eyes and bring up his hands to block the intense blaze before staring at the spreading fire in worry, "Oh, no!"


	2. Chapter 2

Smelling the smoke and fear rising up in the animals they were attacking, Dustin quickly rushed out from one of the stalls

Smelling the smoke and fear rising up in the animals they were attacking, Dustin quickly rushed out from one of the stalls to see Jin staring at the spreading flames. Also spying that he had the farmer in his large reptilian body, Dustin growled at the young naga, "Jin, you big idiot! What have you done?"

Jin kept his focus upon the rising flames that were eating away at the wood and the corpse of the black stallion he recently took, in shock at the dancing fire.

"We have to get out of here!" Touya called over to Dustin and Jin who were still in the barn while Finlay and Aland were already making their escape.

Dustin grabbed onto Jin's upper arm to try and pull him away from the debris that was starting to fall now. "Look out!" He growled, throwing Jin out of the way of the blazing wood that was about to collapse upon the unsuspecting demon.

The pull from Damon's form allowing Jin's snake body to finally release him, causing the human male to take the brunt of the collapsing wood that now burned upon his form once he passed out from the force placed upon his skull.

Jin panicked at the scene, slithering up quickly towards the dying Damon, who was lying there unconscious with the spreading fire threatening to overtake his body soon enough.

When Dustin saw Jin's interest in saving the human, he grabbed onto Jin's wrist harshly to make the demon's blue eyes look into his. "Forget about him, and let's get out of here!"

Jin turned towards the exit of the barn to watch as Dustin finally left before turning back to the human before him. Hearing the human moan slightly caused Jin to raise a brow at the sound Damon emitted before getting up close to the man's mouth with his pointed ear to make sure he was okay before bothering to work away at the blazing, thick piece of wood that rested upon Damon's chest area.

Pearl could hear the commotion going on from her bedroom, causing her to shoot upright in bed thanks to the horses' neighing and carrying on as they tried to escape the barn that was slowly burning. Noticing that the trees on her side of the view were dancing with an orange and red light, Pearl knew something horrible had happened. The fear attacked her body as she got to her feet quickly and grabbed her only weapon of a bow and arrows.

Throwing open her door, she hurried down the stairs as fast as she could to find her two daughters watching in horror at the scene just outside their front door. "Neda, Blythe—get back inside and got to bed!"

"Mother," Blythe began in horror, "father is still in there and those snake beasts just ran from the barn!"

"I know, I figured as much," Pearl responded with a furious nod of her head. "Now go—get back to bed and let me take care of this."

Neda and Blythe didn't want to leave but reluctantly departed quickly back for their bedroom to watch what was going on from their window.

Jin grunted and hissed in pain as he worked on pushing the plank off of Damon's body as the flames licked away at his crimson scales. Grabbing onto Damon's underarms, Jin pulled the body of the human gradually out from underneath the piece of lumber which was once used to keep the roof of the barn up. Throwing the piece off into the back of the barn with his strong serpent tail, Jin could only flinch upon using his tail seeing as his lower scales were now burned thanks to the flames eagerly eating away at them.

Damon could only open his eyes for a moment to see the demon's back facing him before witnessing the creature turning around to get up close to his face to see if he was okay.

Looking at the head of the human closely and carefully, Jin noticed he was hit rather hard and was bleeding really badly from the smell of it. Running his hand down to his chest and abdominal area where the wood piece had rested upon, he noticed Damon had some really bad burns thanks to it.

Releasing a gurgling moan, Damon closed his eyes as the demon's breath was there caressing his face whilst he feared the worse when it came to the monster being so close to him now, seeing as he was clueless to Jin saving him before.

Widening his eyes at the sudden gesture, Jin grabbed gently onto Damon's cheeks, "Hey, what are you doing? Don't die on me now!"

"Where is he?" Touya wondered to himself, keeping his piercing eyes upon the burning farm that was getting increasingly worse from just beyond the giant oak tree.

"If he wants to die, let him!" Finlay insisted before turning his back on the worrying Touya. "I am not going to stay by and get caught because of that idiot!"

Watching as the others retreated after Dustin, Touya shifted his attention back at the barn noticing that the elder female of the family was hurrying towards the barn and with a weapon. Inhaling sharply at this, he slithered quickly back towards the barn in fear, "Oh, no—Jin!"

"Damon!" Pearl called loudly over the blazing fire and the commotion the live cattle was causing. "Damon, where are you?!" Hurrying over to Stella and her baby's stall, she quickly flew open the door to allow them out hoping the mother could help out the child as she hunted for her husband while releasing the other animals that were alive.

Coughing at the horrible smoke that was starting to get to her, Pearl knelt down to her knees before noticing in the thick smoke that was filling up the barn that one of the snake demons was still there and pulling Damon's body gradually towards the exit. Trying to find what strength she had within her body, Pearl growled at what she assumed was a snake demon making off with his prize. Once to her feet and now holding just one of her arrows in her hand, Pearl hurried as quickly as she could at the back of the beast. "You monster!" She screamed with tears creeping from her eyes.

Looking over his shoulder at the oncoming woman with confusion written on his face, Jin took in a quick breath of shock before noticing another part of the ceiling was going to give away soon enough. "Watch out!" Jin called to her before throwing her back gently when his blistered tail whacked into her stomach.

More surprised at the beast being able to talk halted Pearl before she was thrown out of the way of the burning debris that could have caused her death. Flinching from the pain attacking her body thanks to the harsh push, Pearl looked over at the now trapped snake demon as the burning wreckage was now separating him from getting any closer to the exit.

Before she could hope to intervene, Touya quickly slipped into the barn to notice the predicament his partner was in. "Jin!" He called out to him over the raging fire, "We have to get out of here!"

"I know, I know," Jin grunted, picking up Damon's body best he could within his arms. "Here, I want you to take him. I don't know if he's still alive or not, but I don't want him to die in here."

Confused as to why he would want to do this, Touya said nothing as he grabbed onto the body of Damon to haul him over to his side before bothering to confront his friend, "But what about you? This place is going to collapse any minute now!"

"I will try to get out, just go!" Jin demanded, looking for a way to escape as he slithered back and forth judging the rubble that came up to his abdomen while the flames reached his chest. _I could slip over it, but the burns I would receive…I don't know if I would survive that…_

Before Jin could dwell on what to do any longer, the mate to the male he had saved started trying her best to pull at the burning planks no matter how much it hurt her hands to do so. Seeing that Stella dropped her blanket when hurrying to safety, Pearl grabbed onto it to try and beat away at the persistent flames to give Jin a way to escape.

Jin watched from where he stood, knowing one of them had to make it out okay. "Just go and take care of your mate," Jin insisted watching as the flames wouldn't want to be put out no matter what.

"Shut up, and help me, demon!" Pearl demanded knowing what he did for Damon.

Hearing the creaking of the ceiling, Jin knew it was threatening to cave soon and he had better find a way to get them both out and to safety if possible. "Stand back—get out of the way!"

Pearl listened to him this round wondering what he was going to do this time as she hurried into the nearest stall.

Rearing back his snake tail, Jin used as much force as possible on the boards that dared block him from escaping causing them to scatter and give way for him to get out. Growling loudly in pain from the fire biting him once more, Jin grabbed onto his tail for a moment to see that the scales were threatening to give up if he continued to get burned. Gathering what breath he had after the pain overwhelmed him a moment, Jin grabbed onto Pearl's wrist as he hurried as fast as he could towards the exit of the barn.

Touya waited outside of the hangar with Damon's body close to his own, praying that the two would make it out just fine. "Come on, Jin," Touya muttered to himself keeping his eyes set on the barn entrance.

Jin and Pearl were finally at the entrance of the burning farm that was finally caving in from the area in the middle where the fire had broken out. Before Jin could call out to Touya that everything would be okay, he halted in speaking as the creaking of the barn doorway was soon present and causing both Pearl and Jin to fear for their lives. "Come on—let's go!" Jin urged, hurrying quickly towards the doorway that was open for them.

Pearl tried her hardest to keep up but the smoke was starting to really get to her as she collapsed on her front from exhaustion thanks to the poisonous gases she inhaled.

Feeling the woman collapse before they were even through, Jin bent down to drag Pearl the remainder of the way out of the barn best he could. Getting Pearl halfway through the doorway by pulling her underneath her arms, the building could no longer hold up any longer as it finally collapsed—part of the doorway, crushing Pearl's lower body.

"**NO**!" Jin growled, releasing Pearl's underarms to try and get the wreckage off of her.

Releasing a rasping breath, Pearl looked through her hazy sight to see the demon finally getting her broken body free of the scorched rubble. Something damp touch her forehead, Pearl could tell that a thunderstorm was underway and was in a sense relieved knowing that the fire would not spread to the house once the rain started pouring down.

The rain soon soaking Jin's wild red hair and bare body, he turned his attention quickly to the human woman he tried to save for the girls' sake. Placing his hands on her damp cheeks, he looked into her hazel eyes with his demonic blue. Jin could tell she was hurt badly and all the smoke she inhaled must have attacked her respiratory system. Biting on his thumbnail, he shook his head slightly, "I am sorry. I didn't mean for this to happen. It was an accident, I swear…"

Witnessing Jin bite on his thumbnail with a pitiful expression, Pearl couldn't help but attempt a weary yet painful smile whilst she closed her eyes for a moment. He was just like a little kid from the way he held himself, and she knew, if anything, it possibly was if he risked his life to save Damon and her-self. "It's okay…demon…," she whispered before coughing. "I know you wouldn't do something such as that…and then try and save my husband and me…"

Jin's burned tail gradually slipped under Pearl's neck to help support it. Curling up his long python length body underneath her human form, he made sure the woman was at least comfortable when it came to her last moment there on Eytheria. Watching her shiver and try her hardest to breath, Jin furrowed his brow in sadness at her situation.

"Demon," Pearl began softly once more, flinching at the pain in her lower body as well the disorientation she was feeling, "what is your name?"

"Jin," he answered softly in return, coming in closer so Pearl could hear him. "My name is Jin."

"Jin," she replied with another weary smile before rolling her head to the side a moment. Not wishing to die just yet, Pearl forced herself back awake. "I am Pearl, Jin and I want…I want you to…please…do me a favor…and watch over my girls…"

Jin was a bit speechless at her request. He could only think to say he couldn't being he was a demon among other reasons but stopped himself realizing all he had taken that night by accident. "I—I promise I will," the snake demon assured, nodding a bit allowing some of the rain droplets to shake from his hair.

Pearl opened her arms best she could for him with a horrible grunt, "Please, hold me…before I die…I didn't want to die alone…and Damon's…gone…"

Jin knew what she meant being it was everybody's fear. Hefting her body up slowly with his reptilian body which was supporting her, Jin reached for Pearl's body to hold it close to his own before slipping his hand into hers so she would at least feel comforted before her soul was taken from her.

Listening to the abnormal heartbeat of the demon she was resting against, Pearl could only attempt to hold back her sadness at parting from her family though she knew if anywhere she could watch them from above. Feeling the fingers of the demons slipping in-between hers, Pearl's sorrowful frown turned into a smile before switching into severe pain. Her hand clasping onto Jin's tightly whilst her body shook violently Pearl finally succumbed to the horrible smoke intake that contaminated her body and destroyed her.

Jin held onto her hand gently, allowing her to squeeze it as hard as she wanted before passing on. Pearl's hand now going limp within his, the crimson haired demon couldn't help but sigh forlornly to himself allowing her to rest there upon his serpent body.

Touya came slithering up close to his friend to witness the dead human now resting upon him before shrugging himself, "They are dead—they are both dead. What are we going to do now, Jin?"

Jin attempted to answer, but stopped when a small rock was thrown at his shoulder. Not bolting from the impact, Jin looked over at the house to see the youngest daughter of the two parents was standing there in the rain trying to make them leave.

"Get out! Get away from them!" Neda ordered, gathering more rocks to throw at the two serpent demons. She was only able to witness so much from her bedroom window, and the young girl could only assume that it was the demon's fault that her parents were now motionless and dead.

Spying another rock heading in his direction, Jin opened his hand to catch it before tossing it to the side. Since Pearl was dead and he wanted to respect her body, he gently placed her back down on the muddy ground before hurrying over towards the brash child. Arching himself up as far as he could possibly go on his snake half, he startled the young girl best he could with his size so she would stop attacking him before he quickly got up into her face to look at her closer through the heavy downpour and dark night.

Neda couldn't handle the size of the beast and dropped the only weapon she had, attempting to bolt back towards her house if the shock of seeing a demon up close would subside and allow her to. The young farm girl backed up slightly with her wide-eyed expression placed upon Jin, only to be stopped by his tail pressing against her back. "No," Neda begged, bringing her arms up over her face. "Don't hurt me!"

Jin continued to spy the young female up close, grabbing gently onto her wrists to pull her arms from her face so he could see her better. Looking over her tan features a moment Jin eventually shifted his attention over to Blythe who was emitting fear pheromones herself over the situation that Neda was in. Jin didn't want to cause a fuss with the two girls, but said nothing to clear his name either, knowing they were too young to understand as well as naïve. Slithering back over towards Touya, Jin whispered to his best friend, "Let's get out of here. They won't understand right now."

Nodding in agreement, Touya quickly followed Jin out of the farm area and back to where the others had gone into the thick forest not too far away.

Neda attempted to catch her breath at the shock that overcame her before hurrying over to her parent's bodies, "Mother! Father!"

Blythe rushed after her younger sister to hold onto her tightly, knowing that their parents were gone from them and there was nothing left for the two. During the horrible downpour that night, the sisters cried on one another not sure what they were going to do now, unaware that the mother had begged the serpent demon to watch over them now.

--

Neda couldn't sleep the remainder of that night, but refused to get up when the cock crowed as depression overwhelmed her at the loss of her parents.

Blythe on the other hand got up as soon as the rooster announced the morning hour. The rain had obviously stopped and the sun was now steadily rising as the elder Cormac sister got to her feet and went over to her sister's bedside to shake her gently. "Neda…do you want to help me with mom and dad's body? I could really use some help in digging them a grave…"

Neda refused to answer as she lied there upon her side with her back facing her sibling.

Sighing softly at Neda's non-response, Blythe decided to take it upon herself as she excused herself from the bedroom. The Cormac daughter headed down the stairs in the kitchen and living room area before getting to the front door to open it and hunt down the bodies of their parents they wrapped and hid away in the wreckage of their barn so animals wouldn't feed off of the corpses. With Blythe and Neda being so young, it was hard for them to touch a dead body, let alone know one was in their own house even if it was their parents. Finding her way over to the destroyed barn, Blythe rummaged through the charred planks and straw for the blankets that held her mother and father.

After searching for a moment or two in the area she could have sworn she hid them in, Blythe began to get a bit worried realizing that the bodies were not there. "What—where did they go to?"

Just as she was about to hurry back to the house to alert Neda, Blythe stopped a moment spying something out of the corner of her eye. Shifting her attention towards the oak tree, she saw a memorial constructed of rocks of different size as well as some colorful flowers planted beside and in between the two different memorials.

Hurrying over to the rock formation that she had never seen there before, Blythe knelt down noticing that someone had already buried her parents as the names Damon and Pearl were etched in roughly into the largest rock that rested at the head of each disturbed ground where the bodies had been buried for her. Placing her fingers on the stones that held her parents name, Blythe gradually got to her feet confused. "Who buried them?"

The young farm girl consumed in bewilderment by who could have taken her parents and buried them for her, she didn't notice the redheaded snake demon leaving just down the dirt road after the deed he did for the deceased humans.


	3. Chapter 3

Jin threw his head back as he cried out suddenly in horrible pain. Clutching his fists firmly upon the ground with his eyes shut tightly, the snake demon bared his teeth to let out a horrible hiss as his friend worked on the burns he received the night before, "Dammit! That really hurts!"

"Well, this is what you get for interfering like you did with those humans," Dustin replied sounding unsympathetic. The snake demon's large multi-brown and black colored python length body was curled about in a towering circle where Dustin overlapped his arms upon the top of his coiled snake body so he could he soak in the morning sun in attempts to relax at their loss.

"I couldn't—," stopping a moment once Touya hit a very sensitive spot on his lower scales, Jin swallowed hard to try and retain his pain. "—I couldn't let them die."

"And look what good it did you," Finlay felt need to point out, he slithering a bit closer to his injured comrade. "You might as well just let that fire spread about the area and had it kill them all with leaving their children behind in the dust with no parents now to help them."

Having to be reminded of his failure caused the redhead to falter slowly in appearance as his face began to convey his sadness as he rested his head back down upon Touya's multi-blue colored scaly body that was close by. Jin felt really bad for what he had done and now he had to pay for it by taking care of two kids that not only feared him, but he himself would be cut in two by a warrior if caught with them.

Touya wrapping up his friends injured fire red scales couldn't help but stop a moment to look at Finlay with a bit of a glare before eyeing his damaged friend in empathy. His hand meeting with the wild hair of his partner, Touya sighed a bit as Finlay continued.

"And not to mention, thanks to you, our only food source nearby has gone scarce. Now we are going to have to search miles from our home just to feed ourselves!" Finlay seemed to scold like a father to his son.

Dustin listened to the words being shared from where he remained in relaxation before he finally felt pity for Jin as well, "Knock it off, Finlay." The scales on Dustin slowly rubbed against one another as he began to uncoil his snake half from where it had twisted up in several circles in front of him. The dark russet, braided hair demon stretched for the sky once his snake form had finally sprawled out behind him as he looked to the others. "There is no sense in blaming one such as Jin for what happened. It was an accident and it is expected for one as young as he at heart."

Aland snorted silently to himself as he watched Dustin once again put up with Jin's behavior, "Always the excuse for him."

Dustin heard Aland's remark but said nothing towards as he let his glaring expression said all before shifting his attention towards the in pain Jin, "Look, there is nothing that could have been done to prevent what could have happened and what did happen. We might as well forget about it and relocate elsewhere. We've been here for too long anyways and should find a new home out there in Eytheria."

Jin couldn't help but suddenly inhale in shock upon Dustin's suggestion, supporting himself up on his palms from where he was resting. "But, we cannot!" His tone seemed to convey panic at the thought of moving out of the area knowing if he were to go too far from the Cormac Farm, he wouldn't be able to keep his word to the dead Pearl. "We've been here for so long, why should we move just because food is low within the area?"

Dustin couldn't help but raise his brow at the suddenly fearful Jin, "Do you even listen to yourself when you speak, Jin? What sense does it make to stay here if there is nothing nearby to eat? We might as well move on to another farm area if this one is going to be maintained by two little girls. There are at least a few out there though far from one another so we might as well get searching."

"But—!" Jin began hesitantly.

"Jin," Dustin interrupted, "you can stay here with Touya since you are badly burned. Aland and Finlay, you two come with me so we can find a new place to call home." The leader of the small pack of snake demons quickly slithered off into the thick forest that would lead to the south Eytheria dirt road with the others following after him without delay.

Touya watched the others leave the area, waiting for the smell to dissipate from his senses before looking down at the weary, injured Jin. "Why are you so against moving to another area? We will starve if we stay here."

"They don't understand," Jin insisted with a grunt as he forced himself to attempt to stand on his reptilian half. "I made a promise to that woman that died at the farm. I promised her that I would take care of her daughters for her since I caused the fire."

Touya jerked his head back at the response handed to him, unable to breathe after a moment as his mind went blank on what to say. "You promised her, what!" Touya's tone was filled with a bit of sarcastic laughter knowing Jin could hardly take care of himself let alone two little girls. "Jin, what do you mean you promised her you would do such a thing? They are human girls! You are a snake demon! It's not hard to put the two together and see how difficult this is going to be!"

The fire scaled snake demon covered his face with his right hand a moment while the other rested upon his hip. "I know, I know, what I promised was stupid and I cannot keep it." Sighing at his own stupidity, Jin's baby blue eyes darted off to the side a moment to gaze at the wind caressing the blades of grass nearby as he lost himself in thought. "But I've got to try," he seemed to whisper sadly, gazing back in the narrow eyes of Touya. "It was an accident what I did and I want to make up for my big mistake."

"Do you plan on telling Dustin this?" Touya wondered as he slithered closer to Jin.

Jin huffed almost with a shake of his head, his mouth twisted to the side, "No, are you kidding? I know he would tear me a new one if I told him what I was doing."

The sky blue scales of the ice empowered snake demon rolled across the ground still as he made it to his teammate's side, "So what do you plan on doing now, Jin?"

Jin went silent a moment as his sight shifted from the lower left and then to the right in serious thought on what his next move would be now that he ruined everything.

--

Blythe hurried after the horses and cows that got lose from the fire and that were still in the vicinity all by herself since Neda refused to surface just yet from their bedroom. Since the eldest Cormac sister was pretty much on her own and she didn't have the right gear or the know how to build another placement for the creatures, she herded them best she could within the corral they kept the horses in knowing it would be large enough for both the cows and horses that survived the fire. Scaring the creatures within the enclosed area, Blythe shut the only entrance within it before wiping her brow with the back of her hand since it nearly took all day just to get them where she wanted them.

"Well, I think that is just about all of them," Blythe replied to herself resting her hands upon her thighs that were covered up with an ankle length pink dress with brown trim and designs.

A rather loud and frightened sounding whiney was heard not too far off catching the young Blythe's attention from where she stood in front of the corral entrance. Looking through her messy reddish brown locks, Blythe saw that the commotion was coming from the survived Stella who was watching over her very young daughter. The horse's muzzle was lowered to the ground near the remains of the farm area as her nostrils expanded and contracted to take in the scent about the charred remains of the barn in hopes of finding her mate only to buck and snort sadly when she couldn't pick up his scent.

"Oh, Stella," Blythe sighed in condolences over the loss of her mate. Quickly heading towards the distraught mare and her newborn, Blythe came to a slow none threatening walk as she could tell that the mare was beyond upset over what happened not too long ago.

Stella saw Blythe out of the corner of her dark colored eyes causing the horse to jump back on her hinds before supporting herself on them, threatening to rear up and kick out her front legs.

"Easy, girl," the young girl begged softly listening to the disgruntle snorting of Stella.

But the mare wouldn't hear of it as she bolted quickly away from the young teen and off towards the nearby thicket.

Blythe watched in horror as the mother had just upped and left her newborn behind as she kept her arms gently around the young colt's neck to prevent her from following after her mother. "This is just terrific," she seemed to hiss, guiding the unnamed foal to the corral so she could go hunt back down Stella.

Locking up the corral good, she hurried over to the side of the house that held hers and Neda's bedroom window hoping her sister would listen to her, "Neda! I am going to run off after Stella. She got loose and headed into the woods. I will be right back, okay?"

Nobody appeared at the window, the curtains blowing about the wind that caught them as Neda remained withdrawn within herself, hiding from all that had happened dealing with her parents.

Shaking her head sadly and a bit irritably at Neda not answering her, Blythe hurried off towards the direction she last saw Stella head for.

The youngest Cormac sister eventually peeked out from beyond the flowing curtains that blew about the gentle breeze that was howling that afternoon. Overlapping her arms over the windowsill, Neda sighed sorrowfully whilst tears crept down her tanned complexion. It was hard to get her mind around the thought that her parents were no longer going to be there for her when she woke up every day and in while it pained her, it also frightened her. She knew that her older sister knew nothing about cooking for the both of them and neither did Neda though they did know how to care for the animals if anything. But if they didn't find a way to find for themselves they would die of starvation.

Wiping her eyes free of the tears that welled up within them, Neda rested her chin back on her overlapped arms only to catch something out of the corner of her eye. Looking down near the bushes which ran out about the woods that was thinned just to the north where the road and Eytheria plane was located, she saw two large snake demons slithering about the ground, rattling the bushes and crunching the leaves that rested upon the earth. Neda began to realize that the snake demons that had returned were the ones that were there last night after the fire went out thanks to the downpour. She couldn't forget the wild redheaded demon that came right up to her face in attempts to eat her.

Her sadness being overwhelmed by anger, Neda frowned furiously down at the two before pushing herself up off of the windowsill with a huff, "Those bastards!"

Touya worked on staying close to Jin as he skid after his hurrying partner, "Jin, slow down for a minute. What exactly do you think you are doing? You are just asking for trouble by coming back here!"

The injured snake demon stopping for a moment, his eyes made their way over to the destroyed barn and then over to the giant oak tree that rested into the distance beyond the remains of the shattered shed where he buried the two humans. "I came back to check on the two," he answered somberly. "Just because we are to move soon doesn't mean I cannot check to see how they are fairing, does it?"

Touya opened his mouth to say something to that with a raise of his hand only to halt once a pebble came flying at him right beyond Jin's shoulder. The narrow eyes of the snake demon widened as he moved out of the way of the oncoming object with an irritable groan to see it was one of the daughters of the Cormac Farm. "Does that answer your question?" Touya asked pointing over at the upset child.

"Get out of here, the both of you!" Neda demanded as she threw more at them, her eyes brimming with tears of anger and sorrow at having to remember that night her mother died in the red scaled snake demon's arms. "Go on! Get!"

Jin raised his arm to block the only ammo the young girl held with a slight groan since he was in enough pain as it was. "Ugh, come on!" Jin insisted with a growl as he slid off towards the forest which was situated past the corral.

Touya quickly followed after him trying to avoid the tiny gravel as well that were thrown at him, the animals close by bucking and scattering a bit when they smelt the creatures nearby knowing it was their worse predator.

Slipping into the copse not too far off, they merely hid behind the shrubbery hoping the youngest daughter would stop her attack since they were not there to harm her though she was unaware of this. Their demonic eyes gazed out from beyond the bushes and trees that sheltered them now, they both watching from a distance at what Neda may do next.

Neda chased the two demons off into the Emerald Forest that surrounded their farm, she praying at that moment that they were gone before dropping to her knees in her long white gown she wore last night and didn't bother changing out of since she was too overwhelmed with grief to care to. Placing her hands down in front of her on the muddy ground, her gown getting soaked a bit from where she had knelt, Neda shook her long messy beige hair. "Why…? Why did they have to die? Mom…dad…I loved you so much…" Neda's hands clutched upon the dampened grass beneath her as her sadness overtook her, "I am sorry for ever being bad…I won't be bad again if you come back…"

The redheaded snake demon's pointed ears seemed to move slightly as if to listen to her conversation better that she was having with herself. His indigo eyes darted about the scene slightly refusing to remain still at the sight before him, "Poor child."

"Do you see now how difficult it will be to care for children who don't trust you?" Touya asked aloud seeming to have a bit of anger in his voice as he spoke at his companion. "There is nothing we can do, Jin—we did everything we could that night the fire broke out. **_You_** did everything you could and it was all that woman could ask for, I am sure."

Jin appeared to not be listening as he looked off to the left and then right with either ear wiggling and jetting up as if to search for a sound of some kind. "Didn't she have a sister?" Jin seemed to ask absentmindedly.

Sighing with a shake of his head, Touya placed his hand over his face for a moment before eyeing Jin with a bit of impatience, "Have you been listening to me?"

The nostrils of Jin flared a bit as the demon began to sniff about the surrounding area like a hound dog. His palms meeting with the dampened earth a moment, he began to trail about the ground for a moment with his enhanced senses before lifting his head slightly. "I can tell she went off this way with one of the horses," Jin retorted pointing dead ahead before heading quickly in that direction.

"Jin, wait! God, dammit!" Touya snarled gliding after him as quickly as possible on his serpent body.

--

Blythe was trying her hardest to settle the wild and disoriented Stella who had stopped just outside of the Emerald Forest and was now resting within the dirt road known as Stone Passage where the Emerald Forest ended and seemed to converge with the Maka Wood. The place was quite the distance from Cormac Farm and Blythe knew if anything Stella had gone quite a distance for a mother mare who just gave birth not too long ago and it worried her since it was abnormal behavior for one such as Stella.

"Easy, girl," Blythe begged softly, raising her hands up little by little so as not to spook the horse. "I am not going to hurt you. I am just going to take you back to your baby, alright?"

Stella snorted continuously as her head bobbed up and down whilst her eyes conveyed fear of some kind. The beautiful Paint stood still for a moment, her pelt shaking from insects of sorts bugging her almost seeming to have calmed down though continuing to neigh our her sadness it seemed as she was very close to her mate.

Raising a thin blond brow at the creature, Blythe reached her hand out to touch the mare's muzzle only to have her fingertips grace the pink surrounding of the horse's nose before Stella reared up, her ears flattening against her skull. "Oh God, Stella!" Blythe cried out in fear trying to avoid the hooves of the rearing mare that were just above her head.

Stella grazed the arm of the fearful Cormac sister with her hoof before taking off towards the Maka Wood with a wild and anger filled whiney.

Blythe fell upon her rear once the horse darted off into the dark wood, she flinching slightly from the pain in her right arm that was grazed by the upset steed. "Dammit, Stella," she swore in pain. Biting her lower lip, she held onto her arm a moment as her eyes clutched shut in hopes of stopping the tears and sadness that finally reached her. "This is already so hard, Stella…why do you have to make it harder?" Blythe could only wonder to herself.

The eldest daughter helped herself stand up though she could only use her left arm at the time since the right one began to ache a bit from nearly being trampled by the wild Stella. Resting her injured limb against her stomach, Blythe walked slowly towards the Maka Wood where Stella had darted off into. She knew she couldn't go back to the farm empty handed when it came to Stella since the young colt needed her mother to survive. Though the forest on the other side of the Stone Passage was new to Blythe seeing as she never traveled that far from the farm, at least not alone. Gathering up what courage she had to venture into foreign territory, Blythe walked into the woods to hunt down the unsettled Stella.

Pushing away the wild foliage so she could try and hunt down her father's horse, Blythe couldn't help but notice that the mist, which was swirling about her feet, was starting to escalate and get thicker. This made the young girl get rather frightened as she stopped dead in her footsteps a moment, "S—Stella…?" She called out in building fear at the towering coppice around her. The mysterious woods about her began to really spook Blythe as awkward sounds emitted from all angles of the misty forest. Her feet staggering a bit backwards towards whence she came, Blythe stopped for a moment to listen to the hissing sounds emanating from somewhere close by only to feel a horrible pain attacking her ankle.

A poisonous black snake with a gray underbelly had embedded its fangs within the intruder's flesh with a horrible threatening hiss before releasing it to slither off elsewhere quickly. The snake was protecting his home from where he had hidden within the greenery nearby and wasn't above letting a young woman intrude upon it though he was unaware that was never her intention.

Blythe cried out sharply in pain from the venom entering her ankle, flinching from the horrible throbbing before collapsing on her side to cry out best she could, "Help! Can somebody please help me?" Digging her fingers into the moistened earth beneath her, Blythe breathed heavily as she tried to drag herself back towards the farm though she knew it was pointless. When it finally registered that it would be so, all she could do was stop to cry as heavily as she was able fearing she was going to die and leave her sister behind, "No…Neda..! I am sorry!"

Her eyelids grew heavy suddenly as the forest about her began to spin. Fighting to stay awake, Blythe rested her head upon the ground beneath her as her panting became labored from the poison she was administered.

Jin's nostrils continued to flare as he got to the area known as Stone Passage to the humans before snorting at the sudden inhale of fear pheromones he could indicate was none too far off. "Something happened," the half snake demon retorted when Touya finally made his way to his side. "I can smell her fear."

Touya rested upon his reptilian half for only a moment to watch as Jin darted off into the wood on the other side of the dirt road quickly. He knew asking the demon to stop was pointless so he said nothing as he quickly followed behind his partner.

The mist parted for the two snake demons as they made their way quickly into the territory they had been within on occasion to eventually find the in trouble Blythe Cormac lying face down underneath the canopy of the misty wood. Jin panicked for a moment seeing the young daughter lying there without movement as he made his way to her side to check her out and see what had happened.

Jin's hands slipped under Blythe's torso to help her over to her back so he could inspect what was wrong with her. "She's out like a light," Jin's soft voice replied in worry as he pressed his elfin ear against her chest to listen to her heart. "It's weak—something happened to her."

Touya looked up and down Blythe's body before noticing a bite within her right ankle. "Here's the problem," he replied. "She was bit by a poisonous snake. A Black Head maybe since they run rampant here."

"Move, move," Jin insisted as he quickly exchanged places with Touya. Grabbing onto the leg that had been infected, the demon began to suck on the wound where the poison had entered. His baby blue eyes looking over at Touya, Jin pulled back from the cut a moment, "Check her right arm. It looks like it may bruise and I am unsure what happened there."

The icy blue scales of Touya rubbed against the ground and surrounding mist as he eyed the injured arm before feeling of it. Hearing the pain filled groan released by Blythe made the narrow eyes of Touya slip over to the out cold human, glazing at the arm once more. "It might be a crack in her bone or just bruised," his noble tone responded seriously. "It's hard to tell."

"Wrap it up regardless," Jin ordered continuing to suckle on the two small punctures within Blythe's ankle. "I don't want to take any chances. If this one dies, the other daughter will die shortly after."

"Should we take her to Suzuka?" Touya wondered before heading off to grab a few things nearby that could help with the injured arm.

"No, I can handle this for now," Jin assured, tearing a bit of Blythe's dress so he would have something to wrap up her ankle with. "I got the poison out."

"What are we going to do with her when we get back to the farm?" Touya asked situating her arm just right before her breast so he could make the sling for her. "That other girl is not going to like us coming back with her unconscious sister. Conclusions will be drawn if we do so."

"We have no choice," the redhead responded. "We cannot very well take her back with us. Finish up with the sling so we can take her back to the farm. I am going to hunt down that mare she was chasing. I can smell her not too far away from here."

The ice colored snake demon watched as the fiery redhead disappeared into the thick fog before turning his focus back on the moaning Blythe. He could see that she was stirring and witnessed her eyes fluttering open to take a look at what was going on around her. Fearful that she would wake up and freak out, Touya used his index nail to puncture the waking child's neck gently.

Feeling the pinch to her neck caused the young girl to open her mouth in attempts to scream it appeared only to suck in the air about her as if she were being strangled. Blythe's eyes fluttered still as they attempted to stay open and take in what was going on around her. The blurry vision before her would only go in and out of focus as she felt her body beginning to go numb.

"It's okay," Touya's slurry sounding voice responded to Blythe. "It's merely venom that will stun you momentarily. And when you wake, you will be back at home safe and sound."

Blythe fought to stay awake but lost the battle with the strong toxin the snake demon possessed as she fell back asleep.

Touya watched as the young human fell under the venom his nails contained that would stun his victims before consuming them. Seeing that she was sweating a little bit, the ice snake rested his cold hand upon her forehead to try and sooth her temperature. "You'll be okay. We promise."

------------------------------------------

The full moon had risen that night when Touya and Jin worked on getting Blythe back to the farm. She was still asleep after all she went through and trying to recover from the attack of the wild mare and the snake bite. Jin herded the hurting Stella towards the corral best he could, eventually getting her inside with her baby and the other creatures that had been herded within there. Touya kept a hold of the sleeping Blythe as he slithered towards the quiet and dark house, seeing no candlelight within the windowsills.

"Jin," Touya called quietly as he edged closer to the steps, "I think the youngest one is sleeping."

"Great," Jin praised as he hurried towards his partner, opening his arms to Touya so he could accept the sleeping teen. "Let's get her inside real fast so she can wake up without problems. Just be quiet so the other won't wake."

The demons opened the wooden door slowly to peek inside of the farm house to see that the living room and kitchen were just clear. Their heavy serpent bodies slinking upon the wooden floor, causing the boards to moan, they continued to look about the human house with a bit of nervousness. It reeked of humans and that made both of them nervous even if they knew the ten year old daughter had no weapon that could do damage to them.

Jin made his way to the stairs that headed up to the top floor, his ears moving slightly, "I guess her bedroom is up there. I will be right back."

Touya nodded as the snake demon eyed the furniture and silverware with interest since he had never seen such things up close before. He had never been in a human house and the items they used were all new to him and it intrigued him.

The door to Neda and Blythe's room slowly creaked open as Jin pushed open the door with the tip of his tail. His demonic eyes glistened off of the intruding moonlight as he looked about the area with interest and a bit of fear for a moment before crawling silently over to Blythe's bed so he could put her to sleep. Grabbing onto the covers of the unmade bed, Jin pulled them back so he could place down the young girl's body and then cover her back up. "There you go," Jin whispered making sure she was okay for the time being.

Blythe merely moaned as she was positioned upon her comfortable bedding. She knew now, though still sleeping, that she was someplace familiar and it soothed her into a deeper sleep.

The chattering teeth of Neda in the next bed and the vibrations sent through the mattress from her shaking caused Jin to shift his focus upon the uncovered ten year old who went to sleep in her muddy gown. His scales silently slinking over the rickety sounding boards of the house, he made his way over to the freezing child who obviously had no common sense if she was going to sleep in a muddy nightgown. "And you," Jin began quietly, his knuckles resting on his cheek to look as if he were thinking. "What am I going to do with you? You don't even know when to take off your nightgown if it's so dirty and wet."

Neda kept her arms about her torso as she continued to shake within her sleep, freezing from the night air caressing her with the added chill from her still dampened gown.

Jin's glistening eyes darted about the room a moment, spying the drawers a little ways away from the foot of Neda's bed. Grabbing onto the wooden knobs, the snake demon eyed the verity of clothing she had in each until stumbling finally upon her nightgown drawer. Grabbing the frilly white gown his eyes came upon, Jin moved back to Neda's bedside so he could hopefully change her without problems.

The gown meeting with the bedcovers a moment, Jin tenderly and carefully worked on placing Neda within his arms so he could support her and get the dirty and soaked attire off of her. "Here we go," Jin replied quietly to himself as he steadily flipped the nightgown off of Neda before working on putting the warmer one on her body.

Neda's fingers and closed eyes flinched slightly to show she was stirring in her sleep. A soft moan passing through her lips, Neda turned her head towards the bare snake demon's chest to recognize subconsciously that he was a male. Listening to the abnormal heartbeat of the demon, she said not but one word in a bit of happiness it appeared, "Daddy…"

Hearing the name he was given by accident, Jin paused for a moment as he got the gown to at least reach down to Neda's ankles. The demon's face seemed to convey thought more so than anything else at the time, taking in the title of the man he had to watch die. His eyes lidded as he looked down at the sleeping Neda, cupping the back of her head so he could kiss her on top of her beige hair. "It'll be okay, child. I'll try and be here for you."


	4. Chapter 4

**_Author's Notes_**: don't worry about the other chapters being updated or what have you. I am merely going back and rereading them and finding some typos or awkwardly placed words/phrases that I want to remove or fix. I have gotten to the point where I am easily annoyed at typos or hiccups in phrases so, yeah—just fixing typos and grammar issues.

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The polished surface upon the spoon caught Touya's reflection as the demon eyed it with curiosity. The tip of his snake tail flopping back and forth upon the floorboards, he hummed a bit to himself in thought as the silverware dangled in front of him from where he held it. "What a funny looking item," he muttered to himself mostly.

The stairs creaked as Jin's large reptilian body slithered down them carefully so he wouldn't fall. Pausing at the bottom of the stairs, his baby blue eyes looked up at the top of the steps with a sorrowful expression before bothering to turn his attention to Touya. "They are both asleep. They should be okay."

Touya put the spoon that he took interest in upon the kitchen counter where he found it. "I wouldn't be so sure, Jin." The multi-blue scaled colored snake demon met his friend halfway with a soft sigh through his nostrils. "They are young humans and don't have a mother or father. A human doesn't find for themselves until they have least been around for twenty years and are with a mate. They are too young to have a mate let alone be able to take of themselves."

Jin scratched the side of his head with his index finger wondering what to do now knowing the two children would starve. "I remember when I was young, I used to watch the kids eat eggs and pigs," Jin remarked as he cupped his chin in thought. "Bacon—isn't that what cooked pigs are?"

"I don't know," Touya remarked with a simple shrug. "Do you even know how to cook all of that?"

Jin's elfin ears seemed to shift slightly as he looked over at the door. The crimson scales of the reptilian half of the demon crawled against the wooden floor as he made his way towards the exit of the building, "I dunno how to make any of that. But I can bet you anything we can steal some of it in Eytheria's Market Place."

The narrow eyes of Touya had never gone so wide in his entire life as he heard the words surface from his partner's mouth. "Jin—wait a minute!" He ordered as he hurried out of the house to follow the persistent snake demon. Jin had already made his way towards the dirt road that would lead to the Eytheria drawbridge, making Touya have to scurrying to catch up. "Jin, will you just hold on a second!"

Jin refused to as he continued his way down the road placed before him in quite the hurry.

Touya had to really dash after the determined demon before finally catching up, neck and neck to him so as to slip in front of Jin with his arms outstretched, "Jin—stop!"

Jin halted quickly when Touya prevented him from going any further. Growling a bit in the back of his throat, the demon tried to get around his friend only to be blocked from doing so, "Touya, get out of the way! I need to feed them!"

"Jin, they are not your children!" Touya hissed in a low whisper, his finger jabbing Jin's broad chest. "They are not yours to take care of! Dustin plans on moving away from the farm soon so why do you even bother giving them hope? Nature is going to claim them soon enough so just let it go!"

The crimson scaled snake demon snorted irritably, his breath released through his nostrils in an icy vapor thanks to the chilling air as he wrapped his tail about Touya's quickly to remove his obstacle with a harsh tug. "I made a promise and I intend to keep it no matter how ridiculous it may appear to you and Dustin!"

Touya's body was dragged to the side, causing him to fall upon his front from the surprise of it. His nails dragged against the ground beneath him with a hiss from the impact his chest had with the ground. Snarling a bit in return, the ice snake demon tried his best to get his tail out of Jin's only to no avail seeing as the demon was stronger than he was.

"You can either help me or leave, because either way, I am going to get them fed," the crimson scaled snake demon insisted as he continued to his destination.

"You shouldn't even be out here with your scales trying to heal from the fire," Touya remarked, getting back on his reptilian half to catch back up with the hurrying Jin. His arms making their way about Jin's, he tried to pull the demon in the other direction only to find himself literally being dragged. "Jin, come on! Let's go back home and wait for Dustin. He's probably waiting for us as is at this moment—."

"Touya, leave me alone or help me!" Jin insisted loudly once more, jerking his arm away from his friend to dash on ahead without another word.

The sky blue haired demon paused for a moment to watch as Jin hurried on ahead without much thought on the matter to the raised drawbridge that was spotted just up ahead embedded within the towering walls of Eytheria's Market Place. Sighing in almost defeat, Touya shook his head and followed Jin without saying another word this round.

The castle walls towered over the snake demons as they stood there to look at the very top from where they were gazing at the walls from just beyond the moat. There were three entrances all demons knew about and the two main ones were going over the top or going underwater to break the bars that were placed in a small opening that led streams inside of the castle walls outward. But knowing that he would have to travel in and out with food of some kind, Jin decided to take the other one which was located on the far side of castle walls. There was a hole in the wall allowed for small and medium sized demons to sneak into that was covered up by a boulder seeing as some demons didn't want the Eytherian Knights to know there was another entrance into the castle walls that was created a long time ago.

The crimson scaled snake demon making it to the boulder pushed all of his strength into it to move the obstacle with Touya's help so they could reveal the entrance they needed to enter through. Both were quiet as they looked at the entrance before them with uncertainty. Touya could tell Jin was debating on what to do seeing as he had never been behind the walls before and he wasn't sure what would be there. Slithering up close to Jin, Touya tried to peek into his friend's line of sight.

"We don't have to do this if you don't want to," Touya reminded him.

"I have to," Jin whispered before making his way through the slightly large fracture in the wall.

Touya waited until the tip of Jin's tail disappeared into the darkness that the crack in the wall produced before bothering to slip in after him. The darkness consumed them both as they continued to drag themselves towards the light that was just ahead of them. Jin was cautious as he finally made it to the other side, peeking out just beyond the other side to look at the quiet Eytheria market.

The roads in the market place were a lot firmer than the ones outside the walls and the houses made quite the maze on the inside for the demon as he eyed the area carefully from where he remained within the wall. He couldn't help but awe at the sights before him even if it was dark at the moment and the place was dead minus a few positioned guards.

The redheaded demon was about to slink out beyond the bushes that covered up the brake in the wall but stopped when he saw one of the knights walking by. He remained quiet as his eyes pierced through the darkness that shrouded his figure in the Eytheria shrubbery. His ears wiggling slightly to the sound of the armored knight moving onward, Jin peeked out a bit further to see if the coast was clear seeing the knight's back was facing him now and there was none up ahead.

"Come on," Jin insisted quietly before slithering off quickly to the next corner of houses that rested behind the protective walls.

Touya was hesitant at first before seeing that everything was clear, following quickly after Jin down the road before them.

The buildings that seemed to stand a mile high to them shrouded the snake demons with their shadows as they slithered carefully about the maze like market place. Staying close to the walls, Jin came to the end of the line of buildings that were stacked side by side to find the center of the market place. Guards were positioned near certain entrances and exits, making it difficult for Jin to decide where to go for help.

"This would be a lot easier if I were human!" Jin cursed softly to himself as he stayed hidden in the darkness.

Touya looked out at the guards that were separated from one another in wonder as he sighed a bit at the predicament. "Jin, there is seriously nothing we can do at this point. We might as well go home and wait for Dustin."

The door to a nearby house in the back part of the market place slowly opened, allowing the light from the doorway to leak out and pour over the snake demons' bodies. A cat making its way out of the building and into the street caught sight of the demons and knew right away what they were. The house pet hissing and puffing up angrily at the reptilian halved creatures lunged at Touya's scaly half to dig its nails within it protectively.

Feeling the sudden sting to his lower half, Touya flinched and hissed silently so as not to alert the guards that were nearby. Looking down at the spotted cat hissing and carrying on caused him to shift his attention to the opened door and the woman standing within the doorway. Seeing the woman in the doorway not too far away from where they were attempting to hide, Touya inhaled sharply, "Jin…we've been spotted!"

Jin looked down at his friend before shifting his focus on the human standing not too far away from them. He said nothing as he stood still with his mouth gaping open in a bit of fear.

The woman seemed to stand there for awhile taking in the sounds about her before finally speaking, "Who's out there?"

Jin was a bit confused as she should have been able to see him and his partner, thanks to the light pouring out from her house glistening off of their scales. Looking down at the hissing cat who could obviously see them, and didn't want to be near them once it managed to pry itself away from Touya, Jin slithered into the light wondering what was wrong with the middle-aged woman. She was a light skin tone and had shoulder length blond hair that waved slightly in curl. She wore a long nightgown that was an off-white color that reached down to her ankles as well as a necklace of some kind decked out in rare jewels found in Eytheria.

"Who is out there?" She asked once more, bending down to scoot her cat inside before looking back at the world about her, acting as if she didn't see Jin who was soon right in front of her.

The childlike snake demon got right up in the woman's face noticing that she was unflinching from the demon being so close—soon finding the reason why. Her eyes were filmed over, indicating she was blind. "Oh, I am sorry," Jin began causing Touya to panic in the background. "I didn't realize you were blind."

The woman was quiet for a moment before managing a smile, "I can feel your breath on my face. You're awfully close to me to see that."

Hearing that she was blind brought a bit of calm over Touya as he slipped over next to Jin's side.

"I am sorry," Jin apologized with a sidewise grin as he backed up. "I was in the market place with my friend, Touya here in hopes of finding food for two girls we are raising."

"You both are raising two girls?" The woman said aloud as her eyes gazed about the scenery before her though it was all dark to her. Stepping aside, the woman waved for the demons to come into her house even if she couldn't see them. "Come on inside. I don't know why you two are doing this so late but I want to hear more about this."

Jin and Touya looked at one another with a simple shrug knowing it couldn't hurt seeing as she was blind. "Just watch where you place your body," Touya whispered in a warning to Jin as he slipped inside before him.

The floorboards creaking underneath the reptilian bodies of the demons, they made their way into the house before closing the door behind them so none of the guards would create problems. The house was quaint and quite small compared to the one out in the woods where the farm girls lived. The two beds rested in the living room and close by the kitchen area making the demons eye the small décor with interest.

"So you are both males?" The woman asked, finding her way to her bedside easily enough making it appear to the snake demons that she did have sight.

"Last time I checked, yes," Jin joked as he made his way towards the female. "My name is Jin and I promised this woman who I had to watch die that I would protect her children."

"These girls are not yours?" She asked in confusion on the situation. "My name is Lily by the way."

"They are not related to me, no," Jin admitted, sitting on the side of the bed with Lily. "The problem is I don't know how to cook and neither does Touya, so I was wondering if there was something here that could help or maybe some pre-made food for them."

Lily could tell the male speaking was passionate about taking care of the girls that were not his as she thought on what to tell him. "You sound like you are poor and so are these little girls. Are you poor?"

"No, no, they own a farm nearby," Jin explaneed with a nervous chuckle as he raised his hands up as if in defense. "I just don't know how to cook is all and I want to feed them because they are not old enough to have a mate that can take care of them."

Lily raised her brow at hearing Jin phrase it that way, "You mean, a male companion or a husband?"

_So **that's** what they are called_, Jin thought to himself before nodding. "They are little girls and they don't know how the farm works and neither do I."

The woman moistened her lips in thought before helping herself to gradually stand. Jin watched as she struggled to get up, prompting the demon to quickly get to his serpent half he stood upon to help her. Being she didn't have any sight, Jin felt it must have been difficult for her to get around in Eytheria as well as her own house.

"It's okay," Lily insisted even if she appeared to be leaning on Jin a bit when she finally got to her feet with his assistance. "I've got it, I promise."

"Are you sure?" The redhead asked as he released the blind human.

"Being blind since the day I was born has some advantages," Lily said, attempting to sound grateful as her hands found the stove she had in the kitchen area. "Growing up blind gave me the ability to map out the places I go to everyday in my mind and I know where everything is."

"You don't have a—husband?" Touya struggled to remember the term as he tried to avoid the hissing cat that obviously didn't like him and was giving him the evil eye from one of the beds.

"I did once," Lily answered searching through her cabinets to find the things she needed. "He left me though. I don't know what happened, but I guess he found someone better looking than me."

"I am sorry to hear that," Jin said sympathetically.

"Don't be," Lily insisted softly as she lit the wood that would help her food cook. "If being blind I couldn't see through his cold-heart, than I deserved what I got."

Jin slithered up closely to Lily as he listened to her story still feeling a bit bad for her, "You are hard on yourself."

"You're going to have to pay close attention to me," the woman said in attempts to change the subject. "I can show you how to cook, but I am sure if anything it may take more than one lesson. If you want to drop by, I will be more than happy to show you both."

Jin exchanged a glance over at Touya who was standing near the dining table a respectable distance. They knew if they were to learn, it would have to be late at night or early in the morning. The ice serpent nodded at the question written on Jin's expression though hesitantly knowing that the demon was trying to take on too much for one such as him.

"We are both night people," Jin admitted as he looked over the woman's shoulder. "We would have to come at night if that is okay and not a problem."

"It's fine by me seeing as I am awake until my body gives out on me," Lily said, pulling out her cooking pan and a few eggs to show to the men in her house. "Are you watching? I am not doing this for my own benefit, you know."

"I am watching," Jin replied close to her ear and cheek. "If you can feel my breath, you will know I am watching."

Lily couldn't help but giggle since the feel of his breath in her ear and close to her face tickled her. "You don't have to watch **that** closely, but so long as I know you are, let's get started."

--

Jin stayed beside Lily and watched carefully how she made the meal she was preparing for them. There would be times Lily would step aside for a moment to allow Jin or Touya to take the handle to show them there was nothing to it. Being she couldn't see how they were doing, she had to taste the finished product herself just to make sure it was okay and eatable.

Taking a sip of the vegetable soup she was showing them how to make later on in the night, Lily nodded with a slight shrug, "It didn't kill me and it's not as bad as the last one you made." Her hands finding the towel she needed to wipe her hands clean, Lily did so as the clock hanging on her wall chimed three times to indicate the hour. "It's eleven at night, isn't it?"

Touya looked over at the wooden clock on the wall to spot the time, "It looks like you're right."

"I am feeling quite tired," Lily admitted, wiping her brow with the back of her hand from the heat of the fire. "I am going to have to clean up this mess and go to bed. Hopefully you both learned something while here."

"If anything, I can cook eggs and soup decently," Jin chuckled in a bit of relief.

"They are not hard to make if you know how long to cook them and what to add," Lily said, putting out the fire that acted as the heat for her oven. "If you want to serve them bread, I have some bread that can sate the children for tomorrow morning if you wish to take it."

"That would be wonderful. The more we have to give them the better," Jin praised as he helped clean up the area for the blind woman.

Lily smiled at Jin briefly for his help in cleaning up her kitchen. Once he cleaned off the pots and pans they used, she took them and put them back where they were supposed to go. Cleaning off the top with a wash rag, Lily's eyes gazed at nowhere particular, "As for how to work the farm, you might want to ask some of the farm owners out there. I don't know much about slaying cows and pigs to make meat or bacon. All of that comes that way to us from the farms."

"We'll do so, thank you, Lily," Touya riposted as he found the bread she said they could take with them if need be.

"Do either one of you know how to milk a cow, or do you need help there too?" Lily wondered with a slight yawn that she covered up with her hand so as not to seem rude.

Jin saw that Lily was ready to go to bed with how tired she was. He took her wrists gently and helped her towards her bed so she could go to sleep once they left. "There you go. I watched the previous owners do so, so I can milk a cow if need be." Jin pulled the covers out from under her body so he could cover her up for the night seeing as it was the least he could do for the small cooking lessons. "We'll lock the door on our way out, Lily. Thanks for your help. We will be back when we are able."

"I'll keep my door unlocked from six to eleven p.m. so if you want help, please show up around that time frame," Lily yawned with a slight stretch. "Take care of yourselves and goodnight to you both."

Touya slithered quickly out of the house with the items they needed, not exchanging a word to the woman seeing as the place made him very nervous. Jin couldn't help but stop to blow out the candles that lit the house so the woman could sleep. Hearing her kind words, the demon nodded in the dark room with a smile upon his face.

"You too, Lily," he whispered before heading out after Touya once he locked the door.

The two snake demons made it to the back east road of the large Eytheria Market Place to spy a few guards around, minding their posts. Staying close to the dark walls with their bodies lowered out of the guard's line of sight, they hurried to the shrubbery that covered up their escape to head back out to Eytheria's vast plane.

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The morning sun steadily began to rise prompting the rooster to crow at the Cormac Farm. Neda could only flinch slightly from the persistent bird attempting to wake everyone up as the soft morning breeze graced her beige tresses. Fluttering her eyes open to the room about her, the young girl was surprised to see she was under the covers and in a new nightgown when she remembered differently before falling asleep. Her hand meeting with her forehead, as if to try and remember what happened last night while she was sleeping, Neda vaguely could recall a dream of her being helped to bed by her father.

Forgetting about the fire that consumed the barn and the serpents that she thought killed her parents, Neda couldn't help but look hopeful, "Daddy?" Her eyes gazing about the bedroom eventually wandered over to Blythe who she could tell was injured by something from where she stood upright in bed. "Blythe!" She panicked, throwing the covers off of her body so she could hurry over to her sister's bedside. "Blythe, wake up!"

Blythe moaned and flinched slightly from the yelling and shaking of her weary body. Managing to squint through the bright light that emptied into their room, she saw the fear in Neda's eyes, "N—Neda…? I—where—what happened to me?"

"I don't know," Neda said, her tone still carrying worry as she looked at the sling her arm was within. "I woke up to find you like this. You went after Stella last I spoke to you…and it got so late and I became tired and fell asleep."

The older Cormac sister looked up at the ceiling in attempts to recall her memories of yesterday. "I went after her and she," Blythe paused a minute, closing her eyes to try and remember the rest, "she hit my arm, is what she did. But then I was bit—Oh, God, I was bit by a poisonous snake!"

Hearing this made Neda remove the covers to examine her body, "Where!"

"On my ankle I think," Blythe pointed out with a grunt as she attempted to sit upright.

Neda threw the long nightgown out of her way to look at Blythe's ankles only to find the one she was pointing out was wrapped up and seemed fine. "Blythe, you wrapped yourself up. Why are you so worried?"

"What?" Blythe wondered aloud, her voice filled with astonishment. "No, I never did that to myself!" She insisted with a furious shake of her head. "I passed out when the poison threatened to overtake me! I didn't even wrap my arm!"

Both of the girls were quiet, wondering what to believe this moment seeing as nobody was around their farm for miles. The two of them thinking on what to say were both halted when the smell of food enticed their senses. Neda could make out what was cooked as she looked over at her sister with confusion.

"Did you cook, Blythe?"

"No, I don't know how to cook," Blythe answered softly. "You know that."

Neda got to her feet to help her sister up seeing as she was still suffering through miserable pain at the moment. Once the young girl managed to get to her feet with Neda's help, the two of them made their way downstairs to the kitchen and living room to find that breakfast was already made for them. There was milk for the both of them as well as vegetable soup, eggs, and bread and butter for them. Knowing that neither one of them made the food, they cautiously walked towards the table wondering who could have done so.

"This doesn't make any sense," Blythe whispered as she made her way over to the circular, wooden dining table to look at the meal. Seeing as she was the oldest, Blythe took a sip of the soup first cautiously while Neda watched. After a moment or two of letting it sit, she shrugged with the same confusion written on her face. "It's—fine. It's vegetable soup."

"Who would make this for us?" Neda asked, taking the glass of milk to test the food further. Reaching for the bread basket to get herself something to nibble on, she spied a note sticking out from under it. "What's this?"

Blythe sat down at the table to begin eating when Neda found the note. Putting the silverware down a moment at the announcement of finding it, she waited to hear what was written upon it.

_Dear Girls,_

_I am sorry for the loss of your parents so consider this my eternal apology to you both. I will try to feed you when I am able since I promised someone special I would. But you both need to promise me you'll learn as you grow to handle yourselves for I can only do this for so long._

_Enjoy the meal. My friend and I spent a lot of time on it to keep you two alive as promised._

_J & T_

"That's it?" Blythe asked with a shrug as she nibbled away on a piece of bread.

Neda looked on the back and front of the piece of paper confused. "Yeah, that's all it says. Do you know who 'J' or 'T' is?"

"Mom and dad could have met someone in the market known as that," Blythe suggested. "But I wonder why they never came to speak to us personally."

Shrugging at the note, Neda put it back on the table before inviting herself to her chair to eat. "At least if anything someone is watching over us."

Blythe knew she couldn't argue with that as she nodded to her sister, digging into her eggs to eat. Neda followed after her sister in eating unaware that the redheaded snake demon was making sure they were going to eat the breakfast without problems.

"It looks good," Jin whispered, prying himself away from the windowsill that peaked into the kitchen and living room.

"Let's go," Touya insisted just as quietly before diving through the foliage to get back to where they promised Dustin they would be.

Jin attempted to follow after but stopped a moment to look back at the house before him. Hoping deep down they would be okay until he could return, he pried himself away from the Cormac house and headed into the woods after Touya.


	5. Chapter 5

**IMPORTANT**: I just wanted to point out something to reviewers out there and people who want to be big on (harshly) critiquing my work or Raistlin's. As you can guess, this mini-rant/info, what have you is coming from a review that was thrown in our direction from a story we both are co-writing and I wasn't too keen on the review. It was filled with lectures of originality and how bad everything in our first chapter was—literally ripping it apart and not even telling us we did well in one part of the chapter which made us feel pretty useless as writers from this reviewer who had an inflated ego.

Guys, if a story's plot looks crappie to you to begin with or is still so even after the first couple of chapters, or there are things that irk you, and if you think the characters are equally bad as the plot or Mary-Sue in your opinion, please, for the love of God, do not review and tell me I pretty much just need to revamp the whole story. Believe it or not, I am writing for **ME**—not to please **YOU**—every chapter I belt out is something I like and not everybody is going to like what I do so please save me a lot of trouble and just keep the flaming/harsh critiques to yourself. I don't need it. There is at least some good in every story so please find it when you critique and if you can't, find something else to read!

What I am pretty much asking now is to please not critique my characters in a negative way or my plotline because I cannot change those from what I had set in mind. I map out my stories from start to finish and there is no way I am changing either or for **you** because it doesn't boat well for **you**. But if you find something like a hole in the story or something happens that seemed rushed, yes, go ahead and point out the error for me. Just don't tell me I need to rework my story completely for **YOUR** sake. Because this is **MY** story I am sharing and I don't want to feel I am a bad author because someone doesn't like what I am writing and feels the only way to show that is by tearing it apart. I want to know I am at least good at something.

But thanks to those of you who really help me continue going with your helpful criticisms and comments. And please leave me alone those of you who want to nitpick at my work or tear it apart because you're never helpful.

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Dustin paced back and forth upon his scaly body wondering where Jin and Touya had dashed off to. He was beginning to worry seeing as it had been a whole night without any sign of them and the leader of the group was beginning to wonder if they had been killed by passing humans. "I can't believe this," the alpha male said with a growl filling up his words. "I ask those two to stay low until we get back and what do they do? They take off only to get themselves into trouble—or worse."

The albino snake lifted his head off of his overlapped arms that were resting upon a bolder nearby he had wrapped his yellow and white snake half about. A part of him was feeling a bit worried himself even if he found Jin to be a nuisance at times. "I am sure they are just fine, Dustin. You know Jin may be an airhead but he can handle himself with the element he can control as a naga."

The lead snake demon merely shook his head as he continued to pace back and forth with his hands gripped tightly on one another behind his back. He knew Jin and Touya were special, but that was because they were foreign creatures. The two snake demons slithered into Eytheria lost and alone with only the other at their side. Dustin took them into his group that had been cut down thanks to women and men alike who attacked their nests and killed their women and children. It was only them now and Dustin didn't want to lose anymore members. Sighing heavily, the demon's deep blood red eyes looked off at nothing particular with a few strands of his dark chocolate hair unraveling from the braid he put his long hair within to caress his cheeks. "I hope you are right, Aland."

The trees whispered to one another when the wind began to blow calmly and steadily. It almost presented an anxious feeling to the snakes that had gathered below the canopy of the Hi'pulna Copse that was a reasonable distances away from the Cormac Farm to the south. All of the snakes got on alert for a moment as the birds took flight that were roosting within the trees with a furious flapping of their wings and a fear filled chirping sound that seemed to signal danger. Aland and Finlay sniffed about the area as Dustin tried to keep the two snake demons behind him seeing as he wasn't above losing more members of his family. The bushes that were moving now without the help of the wind caught Dustin's attention as he hissed irritably to ward off whoever was coming their way only to be caught off guard by the two snake demons he was worrying over to begin with.

Jin finally made his way past the bushes he was causing to tremble as Touya followed right behind him. The two snake demons could see the relief upon Dustin's face but it didn't take long for it to be replaced with anger and worry. The redhead's shaggy hair blowing about the wind that was conveying his feelings, Jin knew he was in for it as he looked innocently off to the side a moment before eyeing Dustin once more with his childlike look.

His arms crossed over his tanned chest, Dustin narrowed his eyes in disapproval, "Jin, Touya, where the hell have you two been! I have been wondering where you two jokers took off to for hours now!"

"I am sorry, Dustin," Jin apologized as he rubbed his right arm to show that he knew he was in trouble. "Touya and I went back to the farm to check on a few things and I think regardless of what you believe that the girls will be okay and so we won't have to move."

"Jin," Finlay began on Dustin's behalf as he slithered forth on his multi-brown colored scales, "we have already found a place a days walk from here. It's at Lunar Lake and it has another farm there we can feed off of."

Lunar Lake was far to the east of Eytheria was enclosed about in woods and mountains about the lake. It was called the Lunar Lake because of the crescent shape the lake made about the area. The farm they spoke of was owned by the Mallow family and known as Moon-Lu Farm after the moon like name the area was given. It was known for its amazing products and was actually a competitor to the Cormac Farm when it came to selling goods in the Eytheria Market.

"But—why must we move when the Cormac Farm is right here?" Jin wanted to know with his brow furrowing in worry.

"Jin, stop arguing with us," Aland insisted with a stretch of his body as he glided up close to Dustin and Finlay. "We are moving to Lunar Lake. It is all we could ask for and more."

"We might as well get a move on right now," Dustin insisted, looking to everyone within his group. "It will take us awhile to get there and it's best to be settled."

Jin was about to argue but Dustin's glaring pre-scold as well as Touya resting his hand upon his back to stop him, the naga could only sigh out his argument with a shake of his head in defeat. He had failed Pearl, the woman he promised he would watch over her daughters while she faced the afterlife. _What am I going to do? _Jin wondered as he embraced himself.

The alpha male noticed that Jin was looking awkwardly downhearted as he used the tip of his serpent tail to make the redhead look his way. "Don't be so upset. I know this area means a lot to you but there is nothing you can do. Unless, that is, you wish to stay here under your brother's care."

Hearing of his brother made Jin's eyes widen briefly before jerking his head back with a furious shake of his red hair. "No! Of course not!"

Jin had a half brother he parted ways with somewhere down the line of moving from wherever he came from to Eytheria. His brother was a lightening naga and was a loner who dealt with his own affairs and was known to be quite the baby maker for the female snake demons he could find. The views of the two brothers clashed and his half brother's cold hearted attitude made Jin snarl and pull from him. Dustin never liked the snake demon either, but he knew if anything it was an alternative for Jin.

"Alright then," Dustin said with a slight shrug. "Then come with us to Lunar Lake today and don't argue with us. We are not going to stay here and that is final—come."

Feeling helpless in the situation, Jin couldn't help but look to Touya at this point with a pleading expression of help. There was nothing the ice snake demon could do at this point as he shrugged at Jin. He knew they would starve soon if they didn't go but then again, so would the girls Jin promised to look after. He was stuck just as Jin was.

"Just go with Dustin, Jin," Touya advised softly in Jin's pointed ear. "There's nothing we can do at this point."

"But what about the girls?" Jin demanded to know with a slight hiss of irritation that things weren't going his way.

"We will think of something, okay? Just calm down and think of alternatives on the way to Lunar Lake," Touya answered as he narrowed his eyes further at the childlike snake demon who was threatening to throw a temper tantrum.

Jin could only snort out his irritation through his nostrils as he looked at Dustin and the others before grabbing onto his Diary he kept stashed away in his own sleeping area he considered his bed that was made up of rocks of different size and shape as well as wild grass and the five foot tall Paluu Tree leaves that were seen in many different parts of Eytheria but mostly near water.

Dustin headed on towards the Eytheria Plains once everyone was ready even if it would be a dangerous way to go about heading to Lunar Lake especially concerning that it was morning. But he knew it would be the fastest way there without having to take the detour through the forests. Leading the way through the Hi'pulna Copse, he made it towards Stone Passage where he would follow the road till it emptied out into the Eytheria Plains. The leader looking over his shoulder past Finlay and Aland to notice Jin looking lost in thought and quite upset.

"Don't worry," Dustin retorted to everyone though mostly aiming for Jin in the very back of the group, "we will get there soon enough and be settled before the sun sets on the second day."

Jin said nothing as he kept the leather covered dairy in his embrace thinking on what he was going to do when it came to the Cormac Farm he was leaving. Looking over in the direction from whence they came, Jin could only fidget with the pages that were in his diary as he headed after Dustin against his will.

--

Blythe grabbed onto the dishes that were finished that morning to wash them in the sink for Neda. Both were still confused as to who would drop by to make them breakfast and not at least speak to them, but not much was said over breakfast as the two girls had their first meal without their parents. Neda continued to eye the note that was left behind with the food before putting it back on the table with sadness ringing in her eyes.

The elder sister looked over her shoulder at her sister before speaking to her over the running water, "You know, I bet it was the same people who made mom and dad's grave."

Hearing of her parents' grave, Neda couldn't help but frown a moment as she got to her feet gradually. "You didn't bury them? I thought you did."

"No, they were already buried when I went out to look for where I hid their bodies," Blythe explained as she finished washing the dishes with the wash rag. "And whoever they were knew their names." Sighing a bit, she looked through the window before her that showed the corral filled with the barn animals. "Speaking of which, we need to find someone who can rebuild the barn…the animals cannot stay out there forever."

"How?" Neda wondered with doubt in her tone. "We don't have the money to pay someone to help rebuild it."

"Neda, we have to try and fix this place or we are going to die of starvation if our cows die from being put out in pasture during harsh weather conditions," Blythe put morbidly though truthfully. Flicking the water off of her hands, Blythe grabbed onto a towel to wipe them off before putting up the bowls and silverware she wiped down. "I am going to take Midnight and go into town and see if I can find help. And maybe sell off some milk once I milk the cows. Do you want to come with me or at least help me for that matter?"

Neda seemed to dodge the topic a bit as she looked at Blythe confused, "What about your arm? Shouldn't you be taking it easy if it was bandaged up?"

"It just hurts a little where Stella's hoof nicked me. It's nothing bad. Besides, one of us has to do the work around here and I am wondering if you will help me," Blythe wondered, hoping she could have some assistance in this matter.

However, from the way Blythe was standing made it feel to Neda as though she was being criticized for not helping out lately, and it made her anger slightly rise. "Mom and dad are dead! Can't you just back off of me and let me take this in?"

"Neda, I know it's hard not to grieve, but you need to really think about how things have changed now," Blythe replied sympathetically. "Mom and dad—aren't here anymore and they never will be. We need to work on staying alive unless you either wish to go with them into the afterlife, or for me to find us new parents!"

Either option irritated Neda into tears as she shook her head at her sister. "Do what you want…I don't care what you do!" Turning on her bare feet quickly, Neda hurried out the door in her nightgown before grabbing onto the wooden pole that supported the porch ceiling to the left of the porch. She grabbed onto it tightly as if it were her only thing that could support her just like it did with the wooden roof.

Pushing herself off of the well carved, circular wooden plank, Neda rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand as she made her way down the stairs and into the yard. The dew that was embedded in the grass that morning married with her small feet, causing a bit of dirt and grass clippings to stick to them as she walked towards the big oak tree her parents were buried at. Kneeling before the two markers that Jin constructed for them, Neda could only shake her head a bit as she rested her hand upon the marker of her mother.

"Mom…I wish you were here," Neda whispered as the wind teased her beige colored hair. "I really wish none of this had happened…those stupid snake demons!"

Blythe didn't know what to say at this point as she sighed out her sadness and frustration she was feeling towards having to take on everything without her sister's help. The Cormac daughter opened the door to the front porch before taking the steps on the right to head towards the chicken coop with a basket so she could get the eggs from the chickens as she was taught to do since she was six. On her way there, she could see Neda at the grave markers, only able to show her sadness to the situation for a moment before heading onward to grab the eggs she would need to sell and keep in stock for themselves.

Neda looked over her shoulder when she heard the chickens and roosters causes a fuss knowing that Blythe had to be tending to them at the moment. Embracing her torso, she helped herself to her wet feet to head back to the house. On the way there, Neda was stopped by the braying neigh of the horses within the corral that seemed awfully crowded for both the horses and cows. Her deep green eyes caught the newborn that Stella had birthed just last night making her rethink on where she wanted to head. Neda looked up at the door that wasn't too far from where she was standing before heading towards the enclosed area to get a closer look at the colt.

The poor thing was startled as it could be expressed in the way she carried herself and shook upon her wobbly legs. Stella was so distraught over the fire and loss of her mate that she had obviously forgotten all about her baby. The newborn was equally frightened but also hungry seeing as Stella was neglecting her.

Neda's fingers bend slightly over the wooden planks that constructed the corral as she looked at the unnamed baby mare wondering what she should do with her now. "Poor thing…your mommy doesn't really look after you much anymore, does she?"

The deep black eyes of the young horse looked over to the girl that was speaking to her with a muffled whinny. The black muzzle of the beast met with Neda's fingers as the warm breath caressed her hands when the nostrils of the baby flared to take in her scent as if to hunt for the smell of food.

Knowing that if she wasn't careful with her fingers, that the little one may try and nibble on them, Neda flattened her palm for the newborn to smell of before petting her on her pitch black face. "I guess I can relate. My mom and dad are gone too. They won't take care of me anymore." Neda brought her hand back to cross over the wood before her to eye the baby of Stella a bit longer. "You don't look so good." Getting a bit tired of the new addition not having a name, Neda sighed a bit in thought. "You need a name and since my mom and dad can't name you being you came from their horses, I will." Tapping her fingers upon the boards that kept the animals enclosed, Neda ran through some names that would match the black and white young one. "I guess I will call you…Black Rose."

The coal colored ears of Black Rose erected slightly at the sound of the name before flipping to the back to listen to the sounds coming from behind her. The words combined meant nothing to her at the moment but she stayed put to watch and listen to Neda carefully.

Blythe managed to pick up the last bit of eggs she needed before exiting out of the coop a few moments later to find Neda was helping the young foal back towards the house oddly enough. A bit startled by what she was seeing, Blythe hurried towards Neda though carefully knowing she could crack the eggs if she wasn't. "Neda, what are you doing? Put her back in the pin!"

Neda's arms made their way around Black Rose's neck as she shook her head. "Her name is Black Rose and since mom and dad aren't here, I might as well take her; especially if Stella isn't going to and Coal is dead."

"But—Neda, you cannot let Black Rose stay inside of the house!" Blythe felt need to point out with a shake of her reddish brown hair. "She belongs out here where her mother is. I am not above cleaning up after her and I know you won't."

Looking off to the side angrily, Neda eventually had the courage to eye her elder sister as she did so through her messy hair. "Blythe, Black Rose needs something to eat or she is going to stave! Can you at least let me do that before making me put her back?"

Shaking her head as if to single her defeat at arguing with her sister Blythe outstretched her hand with the basket to give to her sister. "Take those back inside and wash them for me. I have to milk the cows now and I will get you the milk you will need."

Nodding, Neda took the basket her sister handed her before helping Black Rose towards the house. Neda opened the front door to wave for the young foal inside before entering right behind her with the eggs she was to wash. The basket being placed upon the kitchen counter where the sink was, Neda paused as something caught the sun with a crimson shine out of the corner of her eye. Seeing as the glow looked almost like blood, Neda gazed over at the object there upon the floor that was near the window closest to the staircase.

"What is that?" Neda wondered as she walked over towards the stairs to kneel in front of the sun's light to pick up the crimson red snake scale that was left behind by Jin. Since Neda had never felt of the snake demon's scales and never saw them clearly at night, she could only look at the scale confused as to what it was. "Whatever it is, it looks pretty." The red scale catching the light from every angle, Neda placed the scale on the counter. "If I had enough of them, I would make a necklace out of them." Turning her attention back to the eggs before her, Neda grabbed onto one to start cleaning them off as she normally did as her chore growing up.

--

Blythe had to milk the six cows they had only to have the day pass her by awfully quickly once she was finished. She was exhausted and the thought of going into town made her groan though knew she had to. Picking up the many pails that were filled with milk now, Blythe managed to drag herself back towards the house as the sun was threatening to set. Opening the front door wearily, she came into the house to find Neda relaxing upon the sofa with Black Rose sleeping on the floor.

"Neda," Blythe sighed with exhaustion, "I got the milk you can give to Black Rose as you call her." Wiping her forehead with the back of her hand, Blythe hunted for a bottle that her mother kept in the cabinets. Her hands finally stumbling upon it, she pulled it out from the cupboard and filled it with the milk the baby could drink.

The younger Cormac sister got to her feet so she could grab the bottle from her elder sister as she kept the snake scale in her hands. "Blythe," Neda began as she took the filled bottle, "do you think you could pick me up a chain or something for this?"

Blythe looked down at the scale her sister was holding only able to wonder as well what it was, "What is that and where did you find it?"

"I found it near the stairs and I don't know what it is but it does look pretty, doesn't it?" Neda answered as she let her sister view it from all sides.

"Here," Blythe said softly as she handed the bottle over to Neda. "Right now I need to get my horse saddled up and head into town. It's so late as is…I am beginning to wonder if I can make it there and back without having to leave you here alone."

Taking the bottle into her hands, Neda could see that it was indeed getting pretty late as she shrugged to her sister. "If you have to stay in town in one of the inns, it's okay with me. I can make it here alone."

"I know you don't mind, sis, but I have to be here with you especially when the sun sets." Blythe's hands searched for the containers that her mother used when presenting the milk to the markets nearby. Eventually finding what she needed, she poured the milk within the glossy brown containers that held their logo on it carefully. "I don't want you to be here by yourself without someone watching over you."

Neda made her way over to the sofa once more where she woke the staving Black Rose to entice her with the bottle she now carried. The little foal caught onto the rubber nipple of the bottle to suck down the milk eagerly while Neda petted her. "I won't be alone. Those people mom and dad made friends with obviously check in on us. I will be fine."

"But, Neda, I don't know if that's for certain whom those people are!" Blythe argued as she finished pouring the milk in the right jars. "Just—promise me you will put Black Rose back out in the corral when you are finished feeding her. And help me with this so I can saddle Midnight."

Black Rose eventually finished drinking the cow milk she was given allowing Neda the free hands to guide the young horse out of the house and with the milk and eggs Blythe had gathered since her sister's hands were full with the saddle she would have to put on Midnight as well as the reins and blanket. While Blythe saddled up her horse, Neda guided Black Rose back into the corral still keeping the eggs and milk protected.

Fitting the bit into Midnight's mouth once the blanket and saddle were on him, Blythe swung herself on over pure black stallion before reaching for the eggs and milk. "This is going to be difficult since I don't know how to hitch him up to the wagon. I am going to have to go very slowly so it might be past midnight when I come home, Neda. Just be careful, okay?"

Neda sighed a bit as she nodded, watching as Blythe gently nudged the stallion in the ribs with her heels to make him go slowly since the eggs could break if he went too quickly. Embracing herself with a soft sigh, the younger daughter of the deceased Cormacs headed back towards the house since it was getting late and there was not much to do now but wait for the day to end.

--

The wolves about Eytheria almost whined to the moon that was about to rise once Blythe stirred Midnight into the closest town they traded and sold their items to known as Kalrune Village. It was a quaint village that was almost like Eytheria's market place and it was built not too far away from Eytheria's walls to the southeast of where it stood. It was the closest thing Blythe could get to without having to worry about carrying on with food that might entice snake demons or other creatures and so she turned on into the village.

Many people were getting ready to pack it in seeing as the day was almost over and Blythe didn't know what to say at this point as she sighed. "I was too late," she said sorrowfully to herself. "I guess I will have to find an inn and wait until day break to sell this stuff and look for help."

Kalrune Village was filled with one to two level houses, a graveyard, and stores for people to buy anything they could think of. Demons were known to sneak into the village from time to time but some of the Eytherian Guards were posted at the town nearby seeing as it was in the King's interest to do so. One of the knights patrolling the center of the town couldn't help but notice the young girl and the black stallion she was riding upon that almost threatened to blind in with the night.

The deep blue eyes of the male catching the two, he approached the two slowly knowing if he ran up to the steed, it would buck and throw the female off. "Excuse me, miss," the guard began as he finally made it to the side of the stallion. "I don't know where you are headed but it's quite late and I think you should be at home."

Blythe looked down at the knight to notice he had dusty blond hair and deep blue eyes. The armor he wore was silver and carved in different designs but mostly with that of a phoenix taking flight on the chest plate seeing as Eytherian people believed in the mythical beast as their protector. The shoulder-guards were the same kind of silver and he wore the same kind of armguards that embraced his wrists and jut out to a diamond like point over his elbow with black gloves on either hand. The armlets were also silver and had many different designs upon them such as curves and circles and lines that had no specific direction upon them just like the leg-guards that reached up to the knee in the same fashion. He wore an undershirt that was long-sleeved and the color of black as well as pants the same color. The guard had a belt around his waste that was brown leather and held a big buckle with another handcrafted phoenix in the center that took up the entire oval shaped buckle. There was a cape that wrapped about his neck and draped down his back for the sake of the cold night air he had to patrol within that was colored black on the backside but a dark ivy color on the underside. It was the first time Blythe had ever seen a knight up close before and she couldn't help but gawk a bit at his attire before speaking.

"I'm—I'm sorry, I know it's curfew and all but I came here looking for help and to sell this stuff but I guess it got late," Blythe sighed in sadness.

The man could hear that she was worried and stressed over whatever happened at her home but all he could do was offer reassurance at the moment. "Alright, it's okay. How about I check you into The Griffon Inn? That way when you get up, you can do what you set out to do."

"I guess—that'll do for now. Though I promised my sister I would get back to her tonight," Blythe remembered as she bit her thumbnail in worry.

The young man grabbed onto Midnight's reins to guide her through the town towards the inn he promised he would get her to. "Don't worry about your sister. I am sure she will be okay. By the way, where exactly did you come from?"

"From the Cormac Farm just up the road a mile or two. I am Blythe Cormac."

The smooth, dirty blond hair of the young knight moved slightly with the wind as he looked up at her through the strands that blew into his face from where his bangs, that reached his chin, were once placed off to the side. "Oh really? I hear your food is the best. My name is Thane—Thane Wilson. I've been guarding Kalrune Village for a few months now. That is, ever since I became a knight."

"I thought you looked kinda young compared to the other knights around here," Blythe remarked as he continued to guide her steed towards the inn in the back of Kalrune.

Thane couldn't help but chuckle a bit as he nodded using the spear he had for fighting any demons as a walking stick. "Yes, I am only twenty years old compared to these other old geezers who patrol as the night shift. Here we are—The Griffon Inn."

The Griffon Inn was a four story inn that was known in Kalrune as the best of the bunch littered within the village. He knew they stayed open all night long for just in case scenarios even if closing time for most places was around eight at night. All of Eytheria was big on curfew given the demon problem that would arise at nightfall. Thane knew if any place, this would be the one for her.

"Thanks, Thane," Blythe replied softly. "Can you help me out here for a minute and take the eggs I have so I can handle the milk and get down?"

"Of course," Thane nodded as he took the basket she was holding carefully before offering his hand to her to help her with her dismount. Handing the eggs back to her, the knight petted the black stallion gently with his gloved hand. "I will take care of the horse while you check in. Don't worry about him. I will make sure he gets only the best care."

"Thank you once again, Thane. I guess I will see you around when I come by here at night to drop off food."

"I guess I will see you in the morning hours before you go about your business," Thane chuckled within the back of his throat as he kept a hold of Midnight. "My time isn't over until the sun rises so I guess I will see you when I am about to fall asleep. Sleep well, Blythe."

Blythe couldn't help but smile softly at the knight before turning her attention to the entrance of the inn. Helping herself inside, she could only hope that Neda would be okay without her there until late into the next day as she made it to the check in desk. _Please hold tight, Neda…I will be home as soon as I find us some help. We could really use it seeing as mom and dad are gone._


	6. Chapter 6

Jin lied out on the cool grass within the misty foliage with his arms crossed before him so they could suffice as a pillow for him. To use for a blanket for his body, he gathered some branches from nearby bushes and trees he could reach as well as used the snake demons' scaly bodies to keep himself warm. The large serpent halves of the snake demons coiled about one another to help keep the members in their family warm that cold night. He, as well as the others, was too weary to press onward so they stopped just a few miles away from Lunar Lake to sleep for a little bit before pressing onwards. The crickets chirped their nightly song rather loudly though it did not awaken the slumbering snakes. They slept well until Dustin aroused from his nap later in the night.

Raising his head off of the cool soil he was upon, he sniffed the air about him to determine the time of day it was as well as if any dangers were nearby while they were sleeping. He could see that the sky was just a bit lighter than usual, hinting that the sun was beginning to rise. He knew that they could get to Lunar Lake close to night fall that day if they left now. Turning his attention to the other sleeping snake demons, he shook Aland and Finlay first so they could work on the other two. "Aland, Finlay," Dustin began silently with a slight hiss, "wake up. It is time we continue onward."

Moaning a bit at having to be stirred, Aland opened one eye to look at his leader before attempting to shake himself awake. His deep red eyes looked about the dark area he woke up within before erecting himself on his yellow and white combined scaly body to stretch for the sky. From where he was standing, he could feel Touya's cold, scaly body touching his own prompting Aland to look at the ice snake demon with a weary raise of his brows. Placing his pale white hand upon Touya's messy, sky blue tresses he shook the demon gently to try and get him to wake. "Wake up, Touya. It's time to get up," he called to his fellow friend.

Touya's narrow eyes blinked awake and he gradually moved his chin from off of Aland's albino scales to look up at the night sky. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes before turning his attention to Jin whose serpent half was resting upon his own. His hand resting upon the shoulder of the redheaded snake demon, Touya shook it gently. "Jin," Touya almost whined, "it's time to get up."

Jin was exhausted and refused to move at that moment. Before he went to bed that night, he dabbled in his diary and he wasn't exactly ready to wake seeing as he was tired from staying up a lot later than the others. Moaning at the shake, Jin merely moved his head as if to get better situated seeing as he wasn't used to getting up so early.

The ice snake demon could only roll his eyes before shaking Jin once more with a bit more force or rather whatever he could muster at that moment. "Jin, it's time to get up! So get up!" He demanded this round.

When Finlay saw that Touya wasn't getting anywhere with his method of trying to wake Jin, he reared his tail back and smacked the demon on the back of his head. "Get up already, Jin!" Finlay hissed irritably once he delivered the blow to on top the demon's head.

Yelping from the impact on his fiery red hair, Jin quickly cupped the sore area with a growl to the one responsible as he looked wearily up at Finlay. "What's the deal? I was tired! I didn't get much sleep last night!"

"Well, that's your fault, isn't it?" Finlay snapped as he pulled himself away from the sleeping redhead to join Dustin or at least get a bit ahead of him.

Dustin watched as Finlay slithered on past him while Jin was threatening to rise into a fighting stance. "Enough," he hissed at the two as he glided in between them so nothing would happen. "We have to focus on making it to Lunar Lake. I am just as irritable as the rest of you considering that we haven't had much food lately, so stop your griping and let's get going. We have a few more miles or so before we get to Lunar Lake."

Jin continued to rub the back of his head before looking back in the direction whence they came, still worrying over the girls he had to leave behind. He was hungry too and knew that if he tried to go back then he would die of starvation but he couldn't help but threaten to move off back towards the Cormac Farm.

Dustin caught Jin about to bolt off back in the direction of the farm they came from and he slithered over to the demon to try and show him the right way. His hand gracing Jin's broad shoulder, Dustin met the confused demon in the baby blue eyes of innocents he held. "Jin, we are almost there. Now, come on with us so you won't starve out there." The demon knew as well that Jin would die of hunger if he went alone seeing as Jin couldn't take care of himself too well without a companion at his side.

Sighing irritably at what was going on Jin nodded to his leader before turning around to follow his friends to Lunar Lake. His red and pink scales crunching against the leaves and twigs beneath him, he could only show his discomfort in being moved still. Jin's fingers wrapped tightly about the spine of his diary as he was pretty much pushed forward with Dustin's hand resting upon his back.

--

The sun finally rose later on that morning just beyond the mountains. The cock crowed to announce the coming of the sun so as to cue the rest of the villagers in Kalrune to wake. Blythe remained under the covers of the comfortable bed she was granted in The Griffon Inn until the constant crowing of the rooster finally roused her. Pushing the covers off of her body, Blythe situated herself over the side of the bed for a moment to try to think back on what had happened thus far. Sighing through her nostrils, she got to her feet and grabbed her attire she removed to sleep.

"I guess I might as well get ready for the day and sell this stuff so I can hurry back to Neda," Blythe said to herself as she put back on her dress before reaching for the belt to put on next.

Blythe eventually got herself ready as she gathered up her belongings and headed down the stairs to the front desk where she could leave and thank the people for allowing her to stay. Her shoes tapping against the wooden stairs before her, Blythe kept the basket of eggs and milk in front of her as she made it to the front where a young woman was awaiting for anyone entering or leaving The Griffon Inn.

The woman behind the desk stood there looking rather bored as she supported her cheek in the palm of her hand. Her wavy blond hair was pulled back halfway thanks to a little braid. She wore a plain white dress with brown boots and a brown belt. Hearing the floorboards creaking nearby, she opened her blue eyes to the young Blythe coming her way with a welcoming smile. "Did you enjoy your stay?" Her soft, kind tone asked.

Blythe stopped in her tracks feeling she was the one the woman behind the desk was addressing. Offering a smile in return, she nodded to her, "Yes, I did. Thank you for allowing me to stay here for the night."

The woman behind the desk opened up the book before her that she doodled upon to say who was in what room and who paid coming in and who hadn't. Her finger scrolling down the names, she checked Blythe's name with her ink quill before noticing that she didn't pay yet. "Miss. Cormac, before you leave," she began seeing as Blythe was heading for the front door oblivious that she didn't pay before hand, "you need to pay me the one hundred coins for the one night stay."

Blythe never felt her heart drop into a panic as it did at that moment when she heard she didn't pay and had to. Turning around with a spin of her dress as she kept the baskets in her hands, Blythe stammered over her words in attempts to find the right ones. "I—I am not sure I have that kind of…money."

Thane was just outside The Griffon Inn, to check on the young girl last night that he helped there before he was to head home to sleep for the hours he was given. His hand pressing against the wooden door, he offered himself inside to find that Blythe was awake and looking rather upset as well as the woman behind the desk who didn't know what to say to the farm girl when it dealt with Blythe not having enough money to settle her stay there. His armor clanking with his walk, Thane's blue eyes caught the woman that was in charge of The Griffon Inn that day. "What appears to be the problem here?"

The elder Cormac sister was a bit relieved to see it was the Eytherian Knight she met last night. She prayed he would help her or at least remember her as she stood there on the sidelines, afraid to speak on her behalf.

"She doesn't appear to have the money necessary to cover her stay here," the worker answered with a bit of disappointment in the matter. She felt bad for Blythe but she couldn't let her leave without paying for the stay. She could get in trouble for that and it was bad for business.

Thane looked over at the innocent Blythe before heading towards the check-in counter with his pouch of money. Pouring out the 250 he had, Thane pushed the coins towards the woman to clear the problem. "There, that should settle her time at the inn as well as taking care of her stallion that is in the inn's barn area."

Blythe released a breath of relief at Thane coming to her rescue as she stood there, trying to settle her body from the horrible feeling rushing through it. Walking towards the knight, she smiled to him as they both turned to leave The Griffon Inn. "Thank you for that. I am afraid I don't have much money lately and that is why I came here to sell a few things in hopes of supporting my sister and me."

The Eytherian Knight's hand rested upon Blythe's back to guide her out of the inn entirely so they could grace the cool morning atmosphere. "Don't mention it. I kind of figured I should check on you and so I did." Thane guided Blythe towards the stable that held Midnight, Blythe's stallion she arrived in before questioning a few things. "You take care of your sister? What about your parents?"

Having to be reminded of her parents that died recently, she couldn't help but remove her smile in place of a frown as she looked down at her feet. "They…died…not too long ago."

Thane furrowed his brow at hearing such saddening news. "I apologize. What happened?"

Blythe managed to get the stable that was attached to the inn she was recently in with the knight. She waited on the side as Thane worked on getting Midnight for her so she could work on selling her products. "A fire erupted in our stable, killing some of our horses and cattle. My father was in there and so were snake demons." Blythe paused a moment as she looked off to the side where the wind was blowing gently. Feeling it upon her face was refreshing at that moment as she continued her story. "My mother went in there to save him and both died thanks to the raging fire and to the snake demons that were about to drag them off to devour them."

Thane grabbed onto the reins of Midnight once he was saddled back up, guiding the large beast out of the stall he was granted that night. "I am sorry to hear that," Thane replied sympathetically. "Snake demons are a big problem in Eytheria lately. I have tried to keep them out of Kalrune at night seeing as I despise them."

Grabbing onto Midnight's reins, Blythe mouthed a 'thank you' to him seeing as she was too lost for words at having to remember her parent's death she was trying to forget the moment it happened. "Our stable was destroyed completely in the fire and so now the barn animals that survived have to be locked up in the corral. I hate to leave them there, especially concerning how unpredictable the weather can be. We cannot afford to lose anything else at this moment…"

His arms crossed over his chest with a sigh of disappointment in what he was hearing as he tried to think of a solution for the young girl. Attempting to smile regardless of the situation, Thane snapped his fingers once he caught an idea. "I will tell you what, I will send a reconstruction team to the Cormac Farm later tomorrow and they can rework your barn. I will pay for it, so don't worry about that."

Blythe blinked in surprise several times. She couldn't believe a knight she met last night was willing to do so much for her when they hardly even knew one another. "But—I couldn't ask that of you! That's why too much! That barn would take quite a bit of money to rebuild."

"Nonsense," Thane chuckled softly in the back of his throat, "I don't mind doing so. I earn quite a bit working as an Eytherian Knight in Kalrune. Besides, you are used to relying upon your parents for all you're taking on now and that's a lot to try and take on at your age which is—seventeen?" He asked, trying to pinpoint her age.

Blythe shook her head though flattered he felt she was that old, "Fifteen. My sister Neda is ten, soon to be eleven this coming week."

Thane rubbed the back of his head, looking further worried for the young sisters. "Goodness, a lot younger than I expected of you two. I can only offer so much."

"It's alright, we have two people who are watching over us," Blythe explained with a slight shrug. "We got a note a day ago as well as breakfast from unknown people who promised to watch over us and feed us. Though I am saddened to say, we don't know who they are and what they look like. Neda and I just assumed they are friends of our parents."

The young Eytherian Knight sighed as he gathered his thoughts whilst lying against his spear. "Well, I will send for people to rebuild your barn so at least that will be settled. As far as food going, I hope you can handle that as well. If not, I can always find you someone who wouldn't mind helping you learn."

"Thane," Blythe began with a bit of a shy smile as her reddish brown hair covered a bit of her face thanks to the wind. "Thanks for your help. That is all I can say right now and I hope one day I can repay the favor." Handing her basket of eggs and jars of milk over to Thane for him to hold, she helped herself on top of Midnight.

The horse threw its head back for a moment, chomping on the iron bit before craning his head downward to hit a spot on his chest that was annoying him slightly. His powerful hooves raked against the ground for a few moments as he waited for his master's signal to move from where he stood.

Seeing she was situated just fine, Thane handed her back the items she was carrying with her when she arrived in Kalrune. "Don't mention it," he promised with a charming smile before backing away in case she felt the need to take off. "I patrol Kalrune every night so you know where to find me if you ever need me." Pausing a moment, the young knight looked off to the side at the village that was outstretched before him. He could tell it was going to be another nice sunny day and her ride about Kalrune shouldn't be a problem. "The weather appears nice so you should be able to sell things just fine around here. Right now I need to catch some sleep and head on home."

"Do you live in Kalrune Village?" Blythe asked from where she was sitting on top her stallion.

"No, I live behind the castle walls on the east side of the Eytheria Market Place," Thane explained. "So, as you can tell, I have quite a bit to go before managing to sleep in my bed tonight." Bowing slightly at Blythe to show his respects to a young lady, he excused himself. "Nice meeting you, Blythe. Good day to you, and I pray all goes well."

"Same to you, Thane," Blythe responded with a nod in return. Staying on top her stallion, she watched as Thane took off towards the Eytherian Castle Market. She could only hope he would make it okay seeing as he looked awfully tired to her. Shifting her attention back down to the basket in her hand, she sighed a bit. "Well, I guess I better hurry up and get this finished with. I have to get back to Neda." Nudging the horse's side gently with her heels, she edged Midnight onward. "C'mon, buddy, we have to get to work."

--

Neda remained asleep, ignoring the rooster that crowed upon their farm the several times he did so. She was exhausted and for some reason, she couldn't pull herself out of bed. The energy wasn't there until finally she managed to beckon to the gentle breeze making its way through her window. Feeling her hair getting tossed around a little bit thanks to the wind sneaking through the crack of her window, Neda steadily opened her eyes to take in her bedroom. Pushing herself up on her forearms, she looked at the foot of her bed as if expecting someone to be there before remembering the day before.

"That's right, Blythe went to sell the eggs and stuff," Neda sighed as she got to her feet to head downstairs. Her bare feet caused the floorboards to creek every step she took as she made her way down to the kitchen expecting to find at least food. "Blythe?" She called when she noticed her sister wasn't there. Neda embraced herself as she headed for the dinning table only to find nothing on it before heading towards the living room to find nothing there as well. "Where is Blythe? I thought she told me she would be back by now…"

Embracing her torso, Neda headed out onto the porch to look out at the enclosed barn animals from a distance. From the look of things, Midnight was still missing and Blythe had obviously got caught at her destination. Neda knew it was only her and she couldn't very well relay upon Blythe to make it back in time to feed the animals. Not really wishing to do such a thing with all things considered lately, Neda knew she had no choice and had to attend to the creatures for their sake so they wouldn't die of hunger. She pushed herself off of the porch railing to go back inside to get ready for the day. There was obviously no breakfast ready, but she could live with that. Lately she hadn't been too hungry anyway.

The young girl reappeared later in her white shirt with sky blue dress that had aqua colored designs upon the bottom. A brown belt held her dress in place as well as kept her shirt tucked while her small brown boots crunched against the twigs and leaves that littered her path to the chicken coop first. On her way there, a dull glimmer off to the right near the trees and bushes caught her eye and Neda stopped to take a peek at what it was. Putting the pails down first, she squatted in front of the item that was dirty thanks to mud sticking to it and being left out in rain and shine for days now.

"What's this?" Neda wondered aloud as she pulled the item from the dirt it had been embedded within. Scratching some of the dirt upon the red item, another red scale that Jin left behind glistened with a dull gleam thanks to the neglect and months it had been there. Neda recognized it from the one she found in the house and couldn't help but show a bit of excitement in the matter. "It's another one of those shiny red pieces." Getting back to her feet, Neda pocked the scale before heading onward to the chicken coop so she could take care of them before tending to the horses and cows.

After littering the feed to the chickens and rooster, Neda helped herself to the hay and horse feed they, thankfully, had enough of to tend for the animals that were saved. Pulling the large bags of oats from the top shelf of where all the food for the barn animals was kept, Neda grunted as she heaved it down upon the dirty floor. It was much too heavy for her but she had to manage without her parents and without her sister's help at that moment. Eventually she managed to pour the right amount in different buckets for the assigned horses waiting outside for her before taking each individual pail for them to eat. It took quite a few trips, but Neda got the horses their feed to satisfy them before working on moving the hay into the enclosure for the animals shortly after.

Closing the main gate for the last time, Neda leaned against it before wiping her forehead with the back of her hand. The sun had risen and was beaming down upon her and making her get awfully hot while doing the chores she normally shared with Blythe and her father. Leaning her head back against the white wooden plank directly behind her, Neda sighed as she looked upward at the sky.

"I sure hope Blythe comes home soon. I can see where doing this by yourself makes you tired," Neda almost complained before hefting herself off of the door behind her. Dragging the pitchfork back to the little house that held the food, saddles, blankets, and reins for the animals, Neda put it back in its spot before dragging herself back towards the house. She was exhausted now and wanted to at least rest. Besides, she had no motivation to do much of anything at that moment as she closed the door to the house behind her.

------------------------------------

The sun threatened to set soon enough that day as the crescent shape of Lunar Lake was finally in view. The snake demons watched from where they hid within the brush nearby where a raging waterfall was thundering not too far away. The large stone house of the Mallow family stood upon the hill that rose slightly from the lake down below. The barn was not too far away and it's equally large size brought possibility for the snake demons who were content to watch the scenery nearby.

Dustin could smell the humans out and about and was fearful to set out for food at that moment. He could spy the eldest daughter walking back and forth between the small view he was granted between the house and the barn. His group was antsy and eager to taste anything at that moment. He could tell in their behavior. But he couldn't risk one of them getting killed. "Just hold still awhile longer," Dustin begged with an irritable sigh of his own. "They should be going to bed soon enough."

"How can we tell from this distance?" Touya asked aloud as he hefted himself on top of a nearby boulder to get a better look at things. "I cannot see if their window candlelight will burn out from here."

"Give it time," Dustin ordered with a slight hiss as his forked tongue make itself known for that split second.

Jin merely huffed as he tore himself away from the group for a moment so he could write in peace to keep his mind off of the hunger and anger he was feeling. Wandering not too far away, the crimson scaled snake demon lied out between a few Paluu Trees to get his thoughts down on paper. Scratching his head in wonder at where to start with the writing item he stole from the Cormac Farm, Jin eventually pressed it to the blank page before him until spoken to.

_I still don't know what I am going to do. I left the girls at the Cormac Farm behind without giving them anything to eat. My hopes at this moment are with them. I wish I could tell Dustin the truth, but I know how he feels about humans. He doesn't like them but I guess you can't blame him when you look back in his past. There were at least twenty of us but now we're down to merely five. It was all thanks to the Eytherian Knights that our numbers were shot down and now he acts like the father I never had. Scratch that—Touya was the father I never had before Dustin._

_Touya told me to think of ways to get from the Mallow Farm back to Cormac, but there is no way I can lessen the walk from here to there. It sure seems hopeless right about now. I can't even keep a promise to the humans I had to watch die. I still feel bad for it, but I know it wasn't my fault because I tried all I could. Didn't I?_

_Well, there is one another option but it seems way too drastic. I won't go there just yet unless I have to. And there is no way I am going back to Suzaku, my half brother, to live with him as Dustin suggested. That guy really gets under my skin and has no morals whatsoever. I guess all I can do is keep my eyes wide open for any answers. I hope they will come soon enough._

"Can we go now?" Finlay whined eagerly as he paced back and forth nearby on his scaly body.

Dustin merely sighed as he threatened to bolt from where he was it seemed. "I think they went back inside, but I am not sure." Turning to his group, he pushed against nothing in particular to signal for them to remain where they were. "Stay here and let me check."

Finlay and the others waited on the sidelines as Dustin separated from their group to check on how the situation was with the Mallow family. From the woods where they were hiding just beneath the foot of the towering mountains, there was a vast open plain and it was too easy for any demon to get caught within. Dustin kept low to the ground as he slithered quickly and quietly up to the back of the barn to check on the windows at the stone built house.

Peeking out beyond his blowing russet hair, Dustin spied one of the windows at the very top having one candle lit still. Regardless of the other three windows being without a lit candle, it showed that someone was still awake and he couldn't afford a human coming out to take what he nearly lost not too long ago. He kept his eyes upon it as he remained hidden in the darkness that was starting to spread about the Lunar Lake. His dark colors helped him stay hidden for the time being as he waited impatiently for that one candle to either be blown out or dissipate on its own.

"Come on, come on," Dustin urged almost angrily as his stomach growling was making him want to override his judgment on the matter.

After a few minutes of waiting, the candle finally went out and didn't relight for several minutes afterwards. Finding it to be okay, Dustin looked to the others that were lying in wait in the forest several feet away and motioned to them with his hand. Finlay and the others erected their bodies in attentiveness, realizing that their alpha was calling them over.

"He's signaling to us," Aland announced ecstatically. "Let's go!"

Finlay and Aland wasted no time in taking off quickly towards the area where Dustin was eagerly awaiting. Touya on the other hand, stopped when he realized that Jin wasn't nearby. Halting for a moment in joining the two, the ice snake demon turned around to spy the young spirited one writing away in his diary.

"Jin, come on!" Touya insisted as he slithered up close to the oblivious demon. "Dustin is waiting for us to eat."

Hearing his friend come a little too close, Jin quickly shut his diary so that whatever he had written couldn't be seen by Touya. "He is?" He asked before bringing the two items close to his chest.

"Yes, now come on unless you wish to starve that is," Touya insisted as he hurried after the others without another word to Jin.

Jin glided after Touya as he kept the dairy within his hands as well as the writing tool he kept on him at all times. The two of the snake demons finally making it up to the barn where Dustin was waiting with the doors of the barn already broken into thanks to Aland, he waved the two on inside.

"Hurry up, already," Dustin ordered. "I cannot afford to baby-sit you two all the time!"

Jin let himself inside to look at the new horses and cows that weren't too happy with the snake demon's appearance and smell. His soft red underbelly glided easily upon the straw beneath him as he tried to make his choice of what to take. One of the Mallow family's cows came up on Jin's right making the snake demon shift his attention towards the large beast in interest. Erecting himself on his serpent half as if to look intimidating, Jin slithered over the door to drop his diary and such in the stall before lunging at the black and white colored animal with a loud hiss. His body wrapped about the creature from head to tail as Jin worked on suffocating the animal and breaking its bones so it couldn't put up a fight any longer. It seemed inhumane but that was what he did to live.

Wrestling with the creature for awhile, the cow eventually stopped moving. Feeling that the animal had finally died and given in, Jin quickly started working on devouring it though his mind continued to wandering during his meal making it difficult for him to really care for eating. At times during his meal, he would stop and look off at the wooden walls as if to remember the raging fire not too long ago. He kept venturing back there and before too long, the thoughts of the fire and the smell of scalded human flesh overwhelmed him and he quickly exited the stable, leaving behind the cow he killed.

Dustin was the one to catch Jin hastily leaving the barn. Slithering out of the stall that wasn't too far from the one Jin was recently within Dustin noticed that the slightly torn apart cow Jin had been working on was barely even bitten into. He could tell that what was taken wasn't going to be anywhere near satisfying for a glutton snake demon such as the wild redhead. But the fear pheromones he could detect worried him as he quickly headed after Jin in fear of the demon doing something stupid. "Jin!" He called out to the frightened snake demon.

Jin didn't stop for Dustin as he hurried down the hill towards the lake. Having to think continuously back on that moment, he embraced his head while shaking it before collapsing on his front there just inches away from the water nearby. "I am so weak…" he muttered to himself, his voice threatening to crack on the words he spoke.

The alpha snake finally made it to the petrified, young hearted snake demon at the lake's edge. Hefting his body over Jin's so he could look at his face, Dustin grabbed onto the redhead's shoulders to get his attention. "Jin—Jin, what is the matter with you? You didn't even eat anything!"

Jin knew Dustin was worried but he couldn't afford to tell him what was wrong. It was a common thing to see among demons, to see people dying or dead, but he wasn't all that used to it anymore concerning that one moment. He had killed many demons as well as a few humans himself with Touya if they bothered to intercept their path and get in his way, but for that one time, he couldn't afford for humans to pay for his irresponsible behavior. "I am…I am sorry…I can't go back into that barn…or any barn for that matter."

Having to hear Jin say that and mean it made Dustin sigh as he looked back up the hill at the barn upon it before turning back to the petrified demon. "Why?" he asked, "What is the matter?"

"I can't tell you," Jin responded almost inaudibly. "You'll think I am stupid…and spineless…"

"So now what, you just plan on starving?" Dustin wondered as he furrowed his brow in worry. "Jin, I know that fire that almost killed you frightened you to some degree, but understand that's not going to happen again."

Jin overlapped his arms upon the ground before resting his chin upon them with a sigh of uncertainty. He didn't want to starve but having to be reminded of that night was too much for him at that moment. He felt trapped and knew now it wouldn't matter where he lived because he couldn't face the reality of that blazing night.

Not receiving an answer, Dustin looked back up at the barn before dropping the diary and writing tool Jin neglected to bring with him earlier. "There—at least take that back. I will go back and get you the cow you slaughtered so you can finish it out here. Just promise me you won't move."

"Promise," Jin mumbled as he grabbed onto his diary to hold close to his chest.

Dustin made sure that Jin wouldn't move as he slithered just a bit away from him before looking back at the upset snake creature. Seeing the redhead didn't have any energy to care for moving, he headed onward towards the barn to drag out the cow his group member had left behind.

Once Dustin was gone, Jin placed his head in his hand with a shake of his fiery red hair. "I am so pathetic," he sighed, his chest aching in pain he never experienced at that moment. Resting his chin back on his arm, he locked his lidded blue eyes upon the ripples in the lake before him as exhaustion and hunger nearly overtook him.


	7. Chapter 7

**_Author's Notes_**: Since I don't like getting nasty, demanding questions being the only focus on my stories and filling up my review slots when it comes to alternate universes or what have you where the characters can be put in different situations, lands, and or forms, if you guys **have** **a question dealing with one of my stories of this nature I beg of you **to do one of the following:

1. E-mail me on **my YIM addy that is listed in my profile**. I will always answer e-mails filled with questions of my stories. It's never a chore if I can get someone to understand the story they are reading. However if your e-mail feels more like a 'sum up the story', I am going to ask you to bluntly reread or choose another story more your level and understanding, please.

2. **IM me** with the question on my YIM or AOL which are both posted in my bios. But if you're that lazy and don't want to look, my AOL is: **Jins phoenix**. I am not going to ignore you, and I am not going to bite your head off. Contrary to my snippy/ranty behavior, I have no reason to be snippy unless I feel you're yelling or attacking me. That's very easy to avoid with me.

3. **PM me** with the question. Both MediaMiner and FanFiction, where this story is posted, have alternatives to getting my attention. On MediaMiner, please click the 'send e-mail' and FanFiction click the 'send private message'. I will answer your questions through that if they are sent and I will most likely get to them faster since it is sent to my hidden MSN which I am on from the time I get up till I go to bed.

4. Add me on **LiveJournal** (the link is in my bio) and pester me there—you have all the options in the world to do so. I update that place almost constantly with a bit or ranting and or raving of the fic community though, be warned, it's **friends only**.

I give you these options because I hate that I post a chapter or a story and all I get is a baffled look on someone's face about a certain topic and it really irritates me when someone is rude about it in the comment slot when I feel I am being as clear as I can here. If you want to be rude to me, please be so in e-mail and or IM—at least through there I can talk to you somewhat face to face. Thank you.

* * *

The full moon that night filled the sky at Lunar Lake as the calm wind and night animals whistled to the only light hanging within the dark sky. Night birds and crickets chirped all during the long hours as the sun almost refused to shine. Jin was the only one awake as he rested there within the surrounding forest near the lake at the Mallow family's farm under the Paluu leaves he managed to gather for his bedding seeing as the Paluu Tree covered the area. He couldn't get his mind off of the two girls he left behind and was worrying about at that moment. He had made a promise to help the Cormac girls and he wasn't someone to leave a promise un-kept. 

The crimson scaled tip of his python length body flipped back and forth as he remained there in thought with his arms crossed before him to suffice as a pillow at the moment. He was worried. It had been two days since he last saw the girls and fed them and at that moment he could only wonder how things were fairing. His pointed ear wiggling in the direction of the others sleeping nearby, Jin looked back at them to make sure they were indeed all sleeping off their meal before pulling himself silently from his bed.

His fingers wrapped about the cover of his diary as he took it with him while standing there upon his erected serpent body. He feared leaving behind his family without a word as to why, but he didn't want to leave the girls at the farm to find for themselves. But as he was slinking away from the serpent nest, he realized that it would take another day if not possibly more to get back to the Cormac Farm since he was so far east. A sigh escaping his lips and releasing as a crystalline vapor there upon the cold night's air, he scratched the back of his wild, messy hair in hopelessness.

"I won't ever be able to get there in time to help them," he muttered to himself as he, regardless, worked on continuing towards the flat land that was resting just up ahead from the Laden Forest that was about the crescent shaped lake near the farm. Jin made it to the outskirts of the forest, resting his palm against the trunk of a Paluu Tree that was nearby. His childlike eyes of deep blue eyed the sky up above to marvel upon it for a moment before slinking down to slump over and think.

As a snake demon, he remained close to home with the family he had made with Dustin and the others so he didn't exactly know how vast Eytheria was and where its borders began and ended. He stayed in one spot where the food was plentiful unless the area was disturbed and humans were causing problems or finding their nesting sites. They never wandered about the human tainted land and for good reason. The only motive for Jin, his brother, and Touya leaving theirs was because their family and friends had been destroyed miles away from Eytheria and they needed to find a new home. Dustin was the one to take them in when his nesting area was disturbed and his family, friends, children, and only home he ever knew was burned and destroyed by the Eytherian Knights or at least, that was the just of what he was told.

The dry twigs snapped behind Jin as he remained there within his thoughts at the edge of the wood. His right ear wiggling slightly to gather the sound, he quickly spun around to bare his fangs at the one that might be sneaking up on him. "Who's there?" He demanded to know in a whisper.

"Relax, Jin," Dustin's deep voice beckoned from within the dark surrounding night as he slithered forward. His crimson eyes blinked at the shadowy figure ahead of him, that his adjusted night sight could make out was indeed the redheaded snake demon. Multi brown colored scales shined from the moonlight gracing them as he made his way over to Jin's side. "Why aren't you asleep with the others? Normally you'd be fast asleep by this time and snoring so loud, Aland would wake up to complain."

Jin could tell what Dustin was getting at as he lowered his pointed ears ever so slightly as well as his serious frown before sighing and looking away. "I am sorry…"

Dustin rested his forearm against the trunk of the Paluu Tree that was close to him as he eyed Jin closely. "Something has you bothered since that incident at the barn. You won't eat, your mind keeps wandering, and obviously it bothers you late at night for you are not sleeping. You're going to end up killing yourself if you are not careful or getting horribly sick."

Jin tapped his fingers on the leather covering of his diary as he thought about what he had written upon the blank pages lately dealing with the Cormac girls. His ears rising once more as he looked back at the endless sea of stars, he scratched the back of his head wondering what to do. He wanted Dustin's advice but he feared what he would say if human children were involved. "Dustin?" Jin began inquisitively, "You had children, didn't you?"

Dustin blinked a few times to show his surprise in the question. It was a sensitive topic for him and he tried to stray from it whenever presented to him but obviously Jin wanted to know something about it. Clearing his throat to keep it from cracking at all, he rubbed the back of his ivory neck wondering where to start. "Well, of course I did. I had many, many children. Even if the female I got pregnant was about to give birth or just finished, I would find another one in heat to have my next batch of children."

"So you had a harem?" Jin wondered aloud quietly so as not to wake the others.

A soft chuckle raised up form the back of Dustin's throat as he nodded. "Yeah, I guess you could say that. But I loved them all and made sure they were taken care of, especially my children. They were my world to me and if I ever did lose one to those wretched humans, I was devastated and took my anger out on them."

The redheaded snake demon listened carefully, feeling a bit piteous towards him. "They meant a lot to you, obviously."

"Oh, sky above, I loved them so much," Dustin expressed truthfully. "They did, and I could see my family growing bigger and bigger with every new addition whether from me or from them. My family was my safe haven alone and spanned for miles in the wooded area to the south humans use to call the Serpents Nest due to our numbers being so large."

Jin cocked his brows a bit confusingly knowing that area well. It was hard to miss it due to the dead, charred land at the base of the mountains refusing to grow anymore life. "Wait, do you mean the area known as Hells' Coppice? That place looked dead to me when I saw it. It was burnt—it's a burned area, isn't it?"

"And then you know what happened next," Dustin said vaguely not wanting to go into elaborate detail. Massaging in between his eyes, he cleared his throat once more though the pain he tried to get rid of was clearly there still in his wavering eyes.

"I—I am sorry, Dustin," Jin apologized as he rubbed his arms as if to try and get warm from the cold night that engulfed them. "I didn't know that everything was…burned."

"My children were my everything and I will never fully heal over what those humans did to me and the family and friends they stole. Even now my body can still feel the blistering fire biting at me," Dustin sighed miserably. Refusing to shed a tear over it at that moment, he shook his head briefly wanting to change the subject. "So, why did you want to know?"

"Well, you know what it is like to be separated from your kids at time, I bet," Jin said quietly as he crossed his arms over his broad chest. "And I am sure the only time you were really defensive and worried were when they were females."

"Mmm-hmm," Dustin hummed with a nod. It was sexist but female snake demon children were heavily guarded from the time they were born till the time they found a mate. Dustin had many daughters and guarded them with Aland and Finlay till they were big enough to be found attractive by other male snake demon. Whenever he had a son, he cared for him until he was at least ten and then would push him out of his care to find for him-self though would watch carefully from afar.

Jin turned to the demon beside him, crunching the dry twigs and leaves there beneath him as he did so. "The reason I haven't been myself lately is because…I have been separated from young, female children I promised another I would take care of," the crimson scaled snake demon answered honestly with his palm pressing against his bare chest.

Hearing this, Dustin was unaware how to express his shock. "Since when did you have children? I didn't know you had a naga in heat, Jin."

Jin's large indigo eyes widened in embarrassment from Dustin's remark as he shook his head furiously not expecting his leader to insinuate that as he hissed, "No, no! It's nothing like that, I promise!" Laughing nervously at the thought, he rubbed the back of his head once more, showing that he did it too often at times especially when in thought or embarrassed. "I haven't been with a female in some time now. Though I have to say I did it merely for the procreating purposes."

"You were a top pick of your old nest?" Dustin asked almost off topic.

The burning color of pink remained on his cheek as he had to think back on his intimate sessions. "I was picked mostly to take some of the females because of my blue eyes," he answered with a nervous chuckle followed by a grin. "Most heated females enticed me into it and sometimes I was chosen by their fathers and or mothers because of my eye color and my build. I was a warrior of my old nest and protected them."

"What of Touya, your friend?" Dustin turned to look back towards the group sleeping deep within the surrounding woods. "His eyes are unique and the likes of which I have never seen on a snake demon."

Jin followed Dustin's gaze to look at the sleeping snake creature with a brief smile. "He was and still is a hard one to help make babies. Some found his eyes to be too cold and scary when they are not that way at all. However, some females did want him to breed because of his scales and their pattern but others didn't like that he was small in height." Clearing his sinuses, he looked back to Dustin with a nod. "But, other than that, yeah I was chosen a lot to be the main snake demon to create babies though, at times, I had to fight my brother for them."

Dustin had Jin and Touya for awhile within his care but both were still enigmas to him. There was so much he needed to learn and know about them just as the same applied to the two additions. "So who are the ones you have now?" He pried, tilting his head to the side as his tail slithered upon the grass.

The embarrassment quickly vanished upon the next question handed to him as he frowned a bit not sure how to answer that. "I—I can't tell you, Dustin. All I can tell you is that I was closer to them back at the Cormac Farm and that was why I refused to leave." Jin's eyes quickly darted about the land in front of him waiting for Dustin's answer. He wasn't sure how Dustin would take that and he feared he was dropping too many clues that it was the Cormac daughters he was looking over.

The alpha snake demon had no idea what Jin was getting at and how he could have hid the two daughters he was planning on taking care of right under his nose. He was at a loss, however, on what to tell Jin. It would be dangerous for the young hearted snake demon to head back to the Cormac Farm alone and he didn't want his clan to head back there when all they needed was at the Moon-Lu Farm. "Jin," Dustin began with a sigh of disappointment, "I really don't want you going back to the Cormac Farm. You will starve there and, besides, it is a day away from here. You wouldn't be able to make it seeing as there is nothing back there for you except for the two young daughters you promised to take care of."

"Dustin, isn't that enough for me to go back there and starve?" Jin asked eagerly as he moved closer to his leader.

"Jin, you are not going back to the Cormac Farm to die!" The snake leader hissed with a fork of his tongue. "Don't be stupid! I can understand how hard it is to try and leave children behind to grow up on their own, but what's the point of going back when you're only going to die in the process?"

Jin could tell things weren't going his way as he contorted his face into a pouting anger. "Dustin, please!" Jin begged his fists clutched tightly at his side. "I have to go back to the Cormac Farm and I will do it with or without your help!"

Scratching his forehead with his thumbnail, Dustin tried not to explode at Jin once more though he was about to. Regaining his composure, he took in a deep breath and released it before eyeing the rambunctious redhead once more. "Jin, I have to do what I feel is right for my clan and those I watch over. As soon as you separated from your brother and came to my nesting site to be let in, you became my responsibility as the others I have with me. I don't want you going back there where I know you will die without help."

"Dustin, please!" Jin continued to beg as he slithered closer to him to grab onto his hand and hold onto tightly. He tried looking the strict naga in the face but Dustin turned his head to show he refused to listen at that point. "Please?" He asked once more with his pointed ears slightly faltered. "You said it yourself that I cannot eat or sleep or do anything anymore so why should I remain here and be miserable? Either way, I might as well just wait to die…the thought of them being alone is eating at me."

Looking back at the pleading snake creature, Dustin could no longer remain angry at Jin as he released a sigh to show his surrender to the younger demon. "If I say 'yes' will you promise me you'll take someone with you?" Dustin asked, raising his finger to Jin as if to scold him like a child.

"Yes, yes, I promise," Jin responded with a furious nod of his head.

"However, Jin, I have one more thing I want you to do for me," Dustin stressed, grabbing onto his wrist to keep Jin leveled. "I am not above releasing you and your friend out to the Cormac Farm to stay and live, but I am also not going to have you traveling back and forth from one destination to the other. If you are eager to be back at the other farm, you must find us a place nearby where the rest of us can thrive from."

Jin looked at him confused as he tilted his head slightly. "You want me to find an area nearby that can make up for the loss of the Cormac Farm?"

"If you want to remain close to these daughters of yours, you are going to have to find an alternative for us," Dustin clarified as he crossed his arms upon his broad chest. "As I said before, I am not going to have you go out on your own. You stepped into my nest and you will remain there until I see fit to banish you or you die."

His baby blue eyes wandered about the dark surroundings before catching Dustin's piercing crimson red. He didn't want to leave the nest, but he felt he was taking on way too much at this moment. It was as though he was forced to find a way to make everybody happy all thanks to his actions at the barn when it burned. Scratching the back of his head, he kept the frown upon his face as he nodded hesitantly at Dustin's request. "How long do I have to find a place?"

Dustin showed Jin three fingers before answering, "Three weeks is all I am giving you. If you cannot find an alternative to Lunar Lake, we will remain here and you'll be forced to stay here with us." Seeing the worry and doubt on Jin's face that he would ever find such a place, Dustin cupped Jin's chin to make him look into his eyes with his scaly tail. "And Jin, I have ways of making you eat and survive. I've come across my own share of stubborn children so don't think you're the first for me."

"Alright, I promise I will find a solution," Jin assured as he grabbed onto Dustin's tail to remove it from his face. "And I promise I will be okay. You worry too much."

"And for good reason," Dustin scoffed before embracing the playful member of his nest.

Jin blinked several times in embarrassment once more as he tried to hide the fact that he didn't mind being embraced by someone else regardless of the times he would pull away from Dustin whenever he did so. He just got a bit annoyed whenever Dustin did it around the others since it was mostly a father holding onto his child and he hated being treated like a kid. Looking around to make sure nobody else was watching and that everyone was asleep, Jin did the same eventually though not tightly.

Dustin kept Jin in his embrace regardless with his hands cupping his upper back and the back of his fiery red hair. "Please promise me you'll at least sleep better tonight and eat something before getting up to head back to the Cormac Farm. I don't want you to die on your journey up there."

"Dustinnnnnnn," Jin whined as he pulled out of the embrace. "I promise I will be fine. I am not a kid. I am old enough to take care of myself." With that said, Jin turned away from his leader to head back to the nesting site where he could hopefully get some rest before the cock crowed upon the Mallow's farm.

The ivory toned snake demon watched from where he was standing as Jin disappeared back into the thick foliage to lie back down for bed. He kept his sight fixed on the back of the foreign demon with a furrowed brow of worry. _But you are so young, Jin…you may not see it, but your heart keeps you young and you act foolish…_ Knowing that the sun would rise within a few hours, Dustin followed behind Jin shortly after to go back to sleep for the coming day.

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The stallion Blythe rode upon made his way gradually back to the Cormac Farm that morning seeing as she had left earlier to gather food that would be suitable for a breakfast even if both girls were at a loss on how to prepare food. She was worried a great deal seeing as some strangers made breakfast for them before but failed to show up for the past two days. Blythe feared that now she would have to take on as much responsibility as she could being the older sister of the two and the thought frightened her.

The hooves of the large beast dug into the ground as he made his way to the farm he knew so well before breaking into a steady gallop to finally reach what he knew was home. Blythe kept the food items securely under her arm as she guided the stallion to the corral where the animals were still being kept until the barn could be reconstructed. Making Midnight come to a halt, Blythe hopped off the saddle with the bread and assorted vegetables within her basket she was carrying. Her fingers wrapping about the reins of the stallion, she guided him to a post nearby to tie him up until she had her hands free to unsaddle him. "There we go," she whispered before getting out an apple that she had on her to feed the horse. "Good boy. I will come back to fix you all up for the day when I put this food up, alright?"

Heading quickly for the house, Blythe jogged up the stairs on the porch out front to get to the front door to let herself in. opening the door, she saw her younger sister sitting there upon the sofa reading a book to herself seeing as that was the only way for her to keep her mind occupied aside from drawing. Offering a brief smile to Neda, Blythe headed over to the kitchen counter to place down the items she bought. "Hi, Neda," she said as cheerful as could be to get her sister's attention. "I went to the Eytheria Market today and got that chain you wanted for those red pieces of plastic or whatever they are you keep finding."

Neda looked up past her book to watch from the side as her sister got out the things she felt confident to try and cook. Marking her spot, she pushed herself up off of the sofa to examine the small, silver chain her sister managed to buy for her. "I found three more just outside around the farm. I guess I can use mom's knife and try to puncture holes through them."

"Please be careful with mom's knife," Blythe pleaded as she put up some of the food for the moment. "I don't want you cutting yourself. By the way, did the carpenters come here to examine the damage done to our barn?"

Nodding, Neda grabbed onto a piece of bread to nibble on since she was hungry for the moment. "Yes, they came. That Thane guy you met at the Kalrune Village was here too. He asked about you and I told him you were at the market place."

Hearing of Thane, Blythe couldn't help but smile for a moment as she got out some of the things she would need to place some of the eggs in. "So, what did they say?"

"They said that, seeing as it was completely destroyed thanks to the fire, they were going to have to build from the ground up. They promised they would make it bigger and make it extra safe so this wouldn't happen again," Neda explained finishing off the bit of bread she had in her hands.

"That's good news," Blythe praised as she put everything away. "Did anybody else show up saying that they were here to take care of us? I was wondering what happened to those people who left us breakfast a few days ago…"

Neda could only shrug with a sour look on her face as she headed back to the sofa in the adjoining living room. "No. I bet they abandoned us. I guess the goddess feels we deserve that much."

Hearing her sister say such things made Blythe's heart ache as she headed after her sister to kneel upon the wooden floor in front of where Neda sat on the sofa. "Oh, Neda, don't talk like that. The goddess makes things happen for a reason and we found someone who is willing to help us in everyway possible. Is that not good enough?"

A frown appeared upon Neda's face as she scoffed at her sister's remark. "I don't see why she had to take our parents from us. That was just cruel and heartless of her."

"Neda, Don't say such things about our goddess!" Blythe exclaimed in shock. "She would never let us down and you know this! We have Thane now to help us and he is doing all he can at this point. Can you at least let him do so?" When Neda refused to answer her, Blythe threw her hair back over her shoulder to get it out of her face as she held her sister's hands within her own. "Neda, please—Thane is trying everything he can to make things easier for us right now."

She didn't wish to hear anymore than she already had. The anger of the situation, regardless, was boiling up inside of her as she pulled herself from her sister. "I will be in my bedroom. I don't want to talk about this now."

"Neda," Blythe sighed as she watched her sister leave the sofa to head upstairs with her belongings. Following after her younger sister, Blythe stopped at the foot of the stairs for a moment wondering what to do about breakfast now. "Neda, are you not going to eat breakfast?" The closing of their bedroom door was enough to give her the answer as Blythe moved some of her reddish brown hair behind her ear to keep it from slipping in her way. Knowing that she was on her own at that moment, Blythe headed back to the kitchen to grab her basket to get the eggs and take care of her stallion she had ridden most of the morning.

Her brown boots tapped against the rickety old porch as she made her way back down to the corral to tend to her horse first knowing he must be exhausted from the ride and ready to unwind. The tranquil breeze caressed her white dress as well as her wavy tresses whilst she looked at the clear, beautiful sky. She was trying to stay optimistic and it was becoming very hard to resist the urge to collapse on her knees and cry in want to give up. Blythe was thankful she had Thane who was eager to help them back on their feet when he hardly knew them; she just wished her sister wouldn't make things harder than they already were at that moment.

"Oh, my goddess…please, help me further," Blythe begged almost in tears as she remained where she was out in the middle of their land staring up at the clear blue sky.

--

The wind blowing about Eytheria graced the senses of the wind snake demon as he wiggled his ears slightly up and down at the feel of it. Turning to face it seeing as it was blowing from the north, he grinned ear to ear feeling it caress his features. "That sure does feel nice now, doesn't it?"

"If you are so eager to get to the Cormac Farm, it is best we keep going," Touya insisted as he offered to go with Jin back to the farm. "We didn't come all this way so you could bask in the blowing wind."

"You're always so serious," Jin grumbled as he followed behind Touya who was keen to get back to the farm from Lunar Lake. He was tired of walking long distances already and wanted to find a place to relax. "Why did you offer to come with me?"

"Because Dustin doesn't trust you by yourself and, seriously, would you want Aland and or Finlay to come with you on this journey of yours?" Touya wondered as his scaly form continued to slither about the flat, grassy surface beneath him that was still covered in dew. The two snake demons decided to be bold and walk out in the middle of the plain that stretched for some distance in Eytheria though they were risking quite a bit in the process.

Grumbling at his friend who was just trying to wise up to him, Jin quickly followed after him to remain at his side. "So, do you know of any places nearby Cormac that could help the others?"

"Jin, Cormac Farm is located far from many places. It's almost isolated and in its own little world," Touya explained with an irritable sigh. "If you want to stay close to those girls, you are going to have to think of some schedule, because everything is either a day or so ride from it."

Pressing his finger to his cheek, Jin hummed in thought as he continued down the path he felt had to be the right one. "Well, there has to be a place nearby somewhere. I mean, come on, there are other snake demons out there somewhere—don't you think?"

Touya could only shake his head from side to side as he shrugged. "I am not sure. I would like to think so but we are the only ones I have seen thus far." Stopping for a moment, the ice snake demon looked left and then right as if to decide where to go though the thought of meeting others rang clear in his mind. "Don't get me wrong, I would love more than anything to have a bigger family like what we had. I miss the thought of having others to protect and women to lie with to make babies."

The crimson scaled snake demon couldn't help but scoff at him for a moment. "You never would lie with another woman. Why are you now going on and on about being with a woman to have children?"

"Well, unlike you, I didn't get so many offers to open up many women."

Jin smirked as he continued towards the forest that was just ahead a several feet away from them. "That's what happens when you have the eyes demon females want as well as the body." His goofy grin soon turned to a serious frown as he thought of Dustin back at the Lunar Lake and about the family he lost years ago. "Speaking of which, I am wondering if it would be possible to find such creatures for the sake of Dustin. I know he had a large family but the humans deprived him of them."

Heading into the thick forest that was in their way, Touya looked at Jin with wonder seeing as he didn't understand or know much about Dustin as a leader. "What do you mean to do for him? Are you planning on finding him a new nest? If so, good luck, because I am sure most of those nests out there already have alpha males."

"Maybe," Jin said forlornly. "I just want him to be happy again is all. I guess he deserves that much for all he has done."

Touya went silent as the two of them continued onward towards the Cormac Farm, hoping to reach it before nightfall.


	8. Chapter 8

I am sorry for the wait. Normally I would have had this done days ago, but I got addicted to this game of mine that I missed out on in 2002 and I need a self-help group. XD

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The sound of hammers wailing on top of nails made Neda flinch the next day as she tried to sleep a bit longer than usual. Her hand cupping the side of her face, she looked out the window wondering what time it was before eyeing the clock on the wall that they had. It was close to twelve, making Neda blink a couple of times thinking the clock was just too fast. It sure didn't seem like it was twelve to her as she managed to sit upright in bed to think to herself for a moment or at least when the obnoxious noise outside allowed her to.

"I cannot believe I slept so long. I didn't expect it to be this late," she sighed to herself. To hear the constant hammering outside of her window made Neda grumble. She couldn't hear herself think making her finally shut her window to lessen the sounds outside.

The door to Neda's bedroom opened slowly as Blythe stood there with a tray of food it appeared, resting within her hands. Her knuckles rapping upon the side of the door, she made herself further known there at the entrance before asking if she could be let inside. "Neda, is it alright if I come in?"

The younger Cormac sister looked at her elder sibling as she remained there in bed. Neda looked through her messy, morning hair before pulling it out of her line of sight. "Sure," she mumbled, looking off to the side to avoid looking her sister in the eyes.

Blythe allowed herself inside of the bedroom they shared that had recently been taken over by Neda and her emotions. Walking over to her sister's bedside, she placed the tray she had in her hands upon the nightstand so that they could be free to check upon her weary sibling. Sitting upon Neda's bedside, her black dressed laced in white designs wrinkled while she sat, prompting her to roll her palm out upon the fabric. Her brown boots she had worn and walked around in all day had lost their welcome as she pulled her dainty feet from them so she could cross her legs comfortably. "I apologize about the noise," Blythe remarked noting that Neda had shut the window when it was normally open on warm days. "The carpenters are here to work on our farm for the time being. It may take a week to fix if they are here from sun up to sun down."

"That's wonderful," Neda responded sarcastically as she looked down at her hands there upon her bedcovers.

Closing her deep blue eyes, Blythe couldn't help but shake her head a bit at Neda though she kept most her thoughts on the matter to herself. "Neda, it is late and I still need help around here. The barn animals can still not find shelter in the barn so I need you to help me feed them at least. I already fed the chickens and gathered the eggs so all I need is for you to help me with the cows and horses."

Rubbing her face with her hand, Neda looked at her sister with a slight nod. "I will be up and ready in a few minutes."

"Alright," Blythe said in return as she got to her feet once more as soon as she got her boots back on. "Please promise me you'll eat first before you do so. Your eating has been not so good lately. I am going to be outside getting started on the rest of the chores."

Neda remained in bed for the time being as she watched her sister head back for the door to tend to the farm while their barn was being reconstructed. The aroma of the breakfast her sister had prepared enticed her stomach to growl as she looked over at the eggs and bread that Blythe knew would be easy enough to make as well as milk in a medium glass. Her hand gripping onto the glass, she brought the rim to her lips to drink some of the milk to at least try and wake her body up.

The door to the front of the house creaked open as Blythe made her way outside onto the porch and then down the stairs so she could make it to the corral. She was going to head to the shack that had all of the grooming, feed, bridal, and saddle equipment that dealt with their horses so she could get started on tending to the steeds while Neda was still upstairs. Pulling open the door so she could let herself inside to grab the feed, she was stopped abruptly by someone calling to her.

"Blythe," Thane called as he walked towards the young girl. He wasn't wearing armor this round but wearing normal attire. He had on a pale green short sleeve top with a brown leather belt holding up his pale brown pants that flowed over his brown boots that were large in size.

Blythe turned around surprised to see Thane at all awake concerning the night hours he worked as she stood there at the door of the shed she had previously opened. "Oh, hello, Thane," she began in surprise. "I didn't expect to see you here."

"I came by to see how things were going," Thane answered as he looked over his shoulder at the workers who were busy getting the barn back together. His short blond hair shifting just a bit in his face, he looked back at Blythe with a smile on his charming features. "I am glad to see they are well."

"Well," Blythe began as she put some of her strands near her face behind her ear, "they could be better concerning my sister but I am not complaining."

Thane eyed the window that belonged to Neda with a nod. "I can understand. I am sure in due time she will turn around."

Blythe could only pray to the goddess that he was right as she stood there in the doorway of the shack. "So, is that the only reason you stopped by, to check up on the progress of things?"

The young knight couldn't help but chuckle, almost nervously upon her question as he stood at the foot of the steps leading up to where Blythe stood. "I also came by to see if you needed help with anything else seeing as with your parents gone, I can imagine tending to a place like this can become difficult."

"It sure can be without help," Blythe said with an added sigh as she turned to the side to face her house once more. "Neda and I have been working on the farm since we have been able and know how it works but it takes us almost all day just to get things finished and it is a real hassle. We hardly have time for ourselves anymore as we used to."

"I can imagine changing from one lifestyle to another is quite difficult, especially for one such as Neda," Thane sympathized as he shook his head at the situation. "Normally, I would be at home asleep, but seeing as things still need to be done here, I naturally do not mind."

Blythe blinked a few times as she tilted her head to the side as if to express her confusion. "Are you sure you don't mind?" She wondered, feeling that Thane must have been up for far too long. "I can imagine working all night makes you very tired and the work that needs to be done is really just going to make things worse."

Thane looked back at the two story farm house for a moment once more before looking back at Blythe with a curious shrug. "I wouldn't mind helping for a little while if you don't mind me borrowing a place to stay in your house. Neda will be up in a little while and I can help until then and maybe a little after. I have a good bit of energy left so I might as well use it for something. What do you say?"

The young farm girl couldn't help but admire his wish to help her further as she appeared to sigh with a smile on her face once she lowered her head slightly. "Do you promise me you won't overdo it? I don't want you to get sick."

"I promise," Thane replied.

Blythe stepped into the shack to retrieve the horse feed to hand to Thane as she took a bit herself once she managed to get the right amount in the buckets she had lined up. Her hand grabbing onto the silver handle, she handed two of the buckets she filled up to Thane. She stood in the doorway of the small building that held the horse equipment watching as the young knight took the two heavy buckets of horse feed without problems. Before he could take off to take care of some of the horses Blythe had tied up so they wouldn't get into others' feed, she spoke up quickly. "Thank you, Thane," Blythe's delicate tone said to the knight with a smile.

Hearing her sincere thanks, Thane stopped at the bottom of the stairs to look up at her.

"Thanks for helping me and my sister out," she continued as she eyed the carpenters working on their destroyed farm. "I don't know what I would do without your help so I cannot thank the goddess enough for sending you to me."

"Neither can I," Thane added in a suggestive tone as he added a smile to her. Hefting up the buckets once more, he headed off towards the corral so he could help Blythe tend to the horses.

From the closed window Neda watched as she continued to pick at her eggs that she had almost finished. Even if her window was closed to the sounds outside, Neda could still read body language and she could only guess what was being said outside. "Humph," she grumbled as she took another bite from her eggs, "keep dreaming, buddy."

--

The trees rustled about the calm, blowing wind later on in the afternoon as the two traveling snake demons headed through the thick woodlands about them they had been traveling in for what felt like forever. The redheaded snake creature stopped for a moment to sniff about the wind to try and figure out where they were. He had grown weary of traveling and his stomach couldn't help but remind him that they hadn't eaten in awhile. His fingers touching the dirt road beneath him, Jin continued to sniff about the area to try and catch a scent that he recognized.

Touya remained nearby as his scales slithered upon the rocky road there before them. He was growing impatient and wanted to find food and shelter. "Are we there yet or not? I am ready to eat anything at this point…I don't care if it is a chicken, I just want food!"

His nostrils taking in a brief inhale, Jin erected on his serpent form to shift his ears slightly upward as he looked into the oncoming forest with interest. "I believe we're almost there. I think that is the forest that the humans call the Emerald Forest so the Cormac Farm should be a few feet away."

Heading on ahead of Jin without another word, Touya made his way into the next portion of the woods showing his eagerness in arriving on time. "If this is the way to the farm, let's hurry up and get there. I am sure some of their creatures survived the fire and I am ready to eat one. I am starving."

"Hey, wait for me!" Jin whined as he hurried after his hunger stricken partner. His serpent body quickly glided upon the grass and twigs that rested in his path as he scurried to Touya's side best he could. "Will you slow down for a minute? I am hungry too, but it's not like we can just go in there and slaughter what we can. Remember that their barn burned down and some of their cattle did too." Jin continued to struggle to try and keep up with Touya as the icy snake demon was hell-bent on getting to their destination that was obviously within reach. "Remember that the place is only being run by children after all!"

The constant banter of his partner forced Touya to finally halt as he sighed, eyeing the canopy above him as if to gather the strength he needed to put up with Jin. His icy sight hooking with his friend's, he placed his hands upon his hips to show he was irritable and lack of food wasn't making his attitude any better. "What do you want to do then, Jin? Do you want us to starve to death? We need some sort of food to be able to survive, and, seeing as I don't have the strength to hunt, I doubt it would be too much trouble to just pluck one animal for the day from the farm."

Jin's sharp index nail tapped upon his lower lip a moment to show he was thinking of an answer. He was hungry too, but he didn't want to kill what remained at the Cormac Farm. A sigh escaped Jin's mouth as he shook his fiery red hair as he looked to his partner. "Alright but only **ONE** chicken," Jin stressed. "Just **_one_** and that is all! That should give you enough strength to hunt for something."

"Thank the spirits," Touya breathed in relief as he headed onward just as quickly as before. He was desperate to get food or he felt he may faint.

Watching his friend hurry on ahead of him once more, Jin followed after him with a chuckle rising up in his throat. "Will you slow down, Touya? The chickens are still going to be there."

The metallic, sky hued scales shined upon the peeking sun that could be seen through the thick forest canopy. He was eager to get to the farm and rest for he had been traveling all day and most of the night. "I don't care if they will or not," Touya grumbled as he continued onward. "I am just incredibly hungry no thanks to you wanting to get to this farm without any stops."

Jin said nothing as the two continued onward through the forest. The scenery was starting to look familiar to the redhead as he recognized a few trees resting nearby on his left with a boulder resting firmly in the middle with a few other stones gathered nearby. He had remembered resting in the darkness that the stone cast with Dustin and the others at times. It was their nesting area for a while until Damon and Pearl started hunting in the area to try and be rid of them; revealing their nesting area to the two parents of the Cormac Farm in due time and forcing them all to relocate.

The Emerald Forest eventually started to thin the further on the two traveled and opened up to the Cormac Farm that rested there in the clearing on the side of the road that led down to Kalrune Village and to the Eytheria Castle. But the horrible sound of the hammering the carpenters were producing frightened the demons as they stopped on the outskirts of the forest. The two of them remaining hid in the shrubbery nearby, they both hissed irritably at the awful sounds that made them flinch and almost entice them to attack the cause.

"What are they doing?" Jin hissed, baring his teeth at the horrendous sound.

"It looks like they are rebuilding that farm that burned down," Touya answered as he eyed the construction site from the safe distance.

"Well," Jin began as he watched cautiously from the sidelines, "it looks like we cannot get to the food now. The farm is way too busy with those humans there building that barn." The wind snake demon watched as Touya seemed distracted slightly by a scent he caught in the air that disturbed him slightly. "What is the matter, Touya?"

"I smell iron…," he mumbled as he looked about the farm area. "It's like the iron I smell when the knights are nearby. There must be a knight here."

"A knight?" Jin wondered with confusion as he looked about the area closely with his big, innocent eyes. "There couldn't possibly be a knight here. Knights are rarely seen at the farm unless they are passing through."

Touya looked about the farm area wondering where it was coming from. The iron on the Eytherian Knight's armor had a distinct smell to demons and helped the demons know when one was nearby. Even after the armor was removed, the scent was left on the knights though it was slightly faint. The snake demon's narrow eyes gazed about the area until he came across an unfamiliar male heading for the farm house. "I think that's the knight walking towards the house."

Looking towards the foreign male, Jin shifted his ears slightly upward as he watched the blond haired man until he disappeared into the house. "What is a knight doing at the Cormac Farm?" This interested Jin and yet worried him all the same. If a knight was going to be around the farm, it would make their staying near the area all the more dangerous.

"I have no idea but we have to be careful," Touya whispered as he slithered off towards the chicken coop slowly so as not to alert anyone nearby. "We need to grab a chicken without being caught and hunt for something worth while."

Jin watched as Touya headed off once more ahead of him as he followed behind his partner. He kept his eyes on the people nearby that made him nervous as he made his way to the chicken hut slowly so none of the humans would be alarmed. "What about the girls? We came here to watch over them as I had promised."

The icy cold hands of Touya touched the wooden planks that made up the chicken hut as he watched those nearby to make sure nobody was watching the area. Looking over his shoulder at Jin, he shrugged slightly as he nodded out at those nearby. "Jin, does it look to you that they need help? It seems to me that these humans are helping them."

He watched from behind Touya as the carpenters worked their hardest on the destroyed barn while the other two girls were milking the cows though they were slightly hid from the demon's sight behind the corral's boards where the animals were put. He felt they appeared okay from where he was watching them, but he couldn't abandon them at this moment without proof that they were.

"Be careful," Touya announced quietly to Jin as he pressed his finger to his lips as if to silence his friend. "We cannot get caught especially with a knight within the area. Just snatch what you need and run back into the woods. We'll come back to the farm later tonight when everyone is asleep."

Jin glided silently upon the ground underneath him as he watched those nearby closely with his ears twitching slightly to catch the sounds around him. He peeked around the side of the small chicken coop to eye the birds that were feeding before eyeing the humans not too far away once again. One of the chickens weren't too far from Jin's grasp as he lunged for one, causing the birds to scatter and cluck like crazy once the snake demons both made themselves known.

Neda and Blythe both heard the chickens from where they were sitting on their wicker stools so they could milk the cows. The chickens would only be that loud if something was attacking them or someone was running through the area and everybody was away from the chicken pen. Blythe was the one to stop milking the cow she was attending to in order to see that the snake demons were trying to eat their chickens.

Blythe panicked as she saw the demons though that didn't stop her from jumping over the corral fence to try and shoo them away with the rocks she picked up on the way over to them. "Get out of here!" She demanded angrily as she managed to strike the icy blue scaled snake demon once in the side.

Touya hissed angrily at the strike of the rock on his side as he had a firm grip on a chicken's neck to keep it from escaping him. He knew if the young girl continued to scream, the knight would surface and they couldn't risk that as he quickly turned away from the farm area and headed deep into the surrounding woods.

Jin watched as Touya took off before him as he grabbed onto the chicken he had managed to catch before quickly going after him. He wasn't above being hit once again with pebbles and dodged which ones he could as he dashed into the thicket just behind the chicken enclosure.

The door to the house flew open as Thane stood there wearily at the doorway before making his way down the stairs and to where Blythe now stood. "Blythe, what is the matter? I heard you yelling."

Blythe looked over at Thane through her wild, reddish brown hair, her expression showing her fear and anger. "Those blasted snake demons came back! I thought they had left seeing as they had been silent for awhile, but I guess they came back."

Thane looked over at the chickens that had shed quite a few feathers in the process of flapping wildly from the snake demon encounter. A frown crept upon the knight's face as he looked at the scene as he hurried towards the chicken pen to make sure that the creatures had indeed left the area. "Those snake demons will continue to come back," Thane announced as he headed back over to Blythe. "I think the main reason they left was because the fire scared them off in the beginning, but obviously they are back to get more of the farm animals." His arms across his chest, Thane shook his head in disgust. "Annoyances those beasts are."

Neda looked over the fence from where she was standing within the corral as her arms wrapped about the cow's neck that she was milking previously. All she could do was stand there in anger at the demons that were chased off. She didn't have the energy to do what her sister did as she turned her attention to the cow that continued to graze.

The weary knight headed back towards the house as he rubbed his eyes to show his exhaustion. "Just be careful. I have never seen a snake demon come out in the morning hours for food like that before," Thane remarked with concern as he made his way to the front door. "I would finish up what is left of the chores and come inside. It obviously is not safe out here."

Blythe nodded in agreement as she looked over at Neda who was listening to the two of them. "Neda and I just have to milk the cows and then we are through. We will be in shortly."

The young knight closed the front door, leaving the two young girls outside to finish their remaining chores. Blythe could only rush back to what she was doing in hopes of hurrying inside to safety. Slipping in between two of the planks to get back into the corral, she made her way to the cow she had assigned herself before eyeing her younger sister. She couldn't afford to have Neda being outside with what had just happened. Being the eldest, she had a responsibility that had been forced upon her when her parents died and Blythe knew now she had to take on both parental roles for the sake of her younger sister.

"Neda," Blythe spoke tenderly with her hands folded there before her, "I think it is best you head on inside with Thane. I will finish what is needed out here."

"But—," Neda began to protest.

Blythe shook her head with her brow furrowed in worry as she eyed her sister seriously. "Listen to me, Neda. Thane is right about those snake beasts. They normally only come out at night and never come out at day unless they are really hungry or something is wrong." The eldest Cormac sister couldn't help but gaze back over at the rattled chickens for the moment as she said this. "The last thing I want is for them to come after you and eat you." Blythe looked back over the bi-colored cow that separated her from her sister as she pet the docile creature gently. "I already lost mom and dad to them and I don't want to lose you. So please, go inside with Thane and stay out of trouble."

Neda didn't enjoy doing her chores and having a valid reason to leave them now was a relief to her, especially with her energy mostly gone lately with her still being upset over her parent's unfair demise. But she would be leaving her only sibling outside where the snake demons had appeared and that worried her. She didn't want to leave Blythe alone with such a threat and it made her hesitate in her actions.

"Are you sure you will be okay out here?" Neda asked with concern.

"I am not certain," Blythe answered honestly with a sigh. "But I have to finish up here and I can do it a lot quicker without all these questions being asked." Waving her hand slightly towards her sister, she tried to help her along towards the house with the quick motion of her hand. "Now go inside—hurry."

Neda picked up the pails of milk she had managed to collect and headed for the house without spilling a drop of it. Her boots pressing into the weathered wood on their porch, she couldn't help but stop to look back at her sister out in the corral. Her fingers tapping upon her palm as she held the buckets firmly, she hummed sorrowfully as her mind swirled with worrying thoughts. _If anything, at least Thane is here to slay those beasts_, Neda reminded herself as she walked on inside.

The caught chickens that Jin and Touya had managed to grab before being spied were trying their hardest to escape the demons that had them tightly by the neck. Touya eventually had enough of the annoying sound the bird made and sunk his fangs deep inside of the flapping body of the domestic creature. The crimson blood of the animal marred with Touya's mouth and dripped to the floor beneath him as he kept a firm hold on the creature that was intent to continue thrusting about until it had no life left within it.

Pulling his mouth from the farm bird, he licked the blood off of his pale skin as he looked over at Jin who had already started eating on the chicken he caught. "I am amazed that knight didn't come out to kill us when that girl threw a fit."

Jin tore into the flesh that the bird would give him before looking at his partner with his ears slightly upright. "That knight wasn't wearing any armor," the redhead felt need to point out as he wiped his mouth that was starting to drip with blood. "I could smell the faint scent of iron on him but I don't think he was being a knight at that moment. He looked way too tired to me when he went into the house."

"That seems odd for a human that age," Touya remarked looking over his shoulder. "Normally humans have to be on Eytherian soil for at least sixty or so years before getting weary and tired I think."

The bushes rubbing together not too far away from the duo caught them both by surprise as they looked over at the shaking shrubs in alert. Jin's ears rose quickly and shifted about listening to the bushes and trying to find what could be causing the undergrowth to move as they were as Touya started to get into a threatening stance, hissing and wavering about on his serpent half. The two of them said not a word as they remained fixed waiting as the green leaves finally parted to reveal a female snake demon.

Jin was surprised as he widened his eyes slightly at the female naga with abdomen length white hair and crystal blue like scales that were a hue or so lighter from Touya's. Her hair flowed over her bare chest as she sat there, frightened at the two unknown male serpents. Jin watched as she fidgeted with her long, poisonous nails before bothering to come closer slowly so as not to startle her.

"Who are you?" Jin asked as he tried to peer into the young female's eyes that had nothing but a soft violet to them, showing no slit in her eyes whatsoever.

The nervous young demon looked off to the side as if to dodge the question as she hid her face with her hair. "I am sorry…I got lost. Help me before the iron men kill me?" She begged shyly, referring to the knights.


	9. Chapter 9

_**Author's Notes**_: Please forgive me for not working on this one in awhile. I was desperate to finish up my two year runner, The Worthless Humans. I finally got it wrapped up so I can try and pull out another story but right now—I need to concentrate on those that I have yet to work on.

--

Jin had the unknown female snake demon by the wrist as they glided quickly across the floral ground to escape the stomping of hooves they could hear within the thick forest. The braying of stallions in armor frightened him as he tried to keep low to the ground with the female that was just as startled as the redhead. Looking at the area that passed them by swiftly, almost being nothing but a blur of greens and blue, he spotted a slight slope not too far away that looked almost like a miniature cave to his eyes resting at the foot of a small hill.

Touya followed behind the two demons in front of him as he looked over his shoulder to spy the shadows of the guards that were chasing after them on the nearby dirt road. It made him hiss in nervousness as he tried to catch up on the two that were ahead of him. "Jin, where are we going to hide?"

"Up ahead," he answered quietly over the thundering hooves of the knight stallions. "Hurry and hide within the shadows that is located up ahead!"

Nobody objected as Jin led the way to the cave like area that was embedded within the towering hills that covered the creation in hanging moss and vines. Jin hurried the nameless serpent on in before him before he slid on inside after her with Touya taking up the rear. His pointed ears listened to the pounding that echoed throughout the land and the neighing of the horses that the men in iron rode around upon. The clanking of the stallions' armor rang within his sensitive hearing as he ducked down with an irritable hiss at the stench of blood stained iron being so close.

"Keep quiet," Jin ordered silently as he pressed his finger to his lips with the woman shivering close to his broad figure.

The snake female had no objection as she nuzzled into his side. She could spy the shadows of the knights of Eytheria walking about and conversing with one another outside of the cave they had all gathered up within. "When are they going away?" She asked silently in a fear filled hiss.

"I am not sure," Jin answered quietly in return as his large, blue eyes graced the only entrance and exit with fear at the horrible scent that wafted his senses. "What exactly did you do to them?"

The fair tresses of the snake woman shook about in the dark of their surroundings. "I didn't do anything! I got separated from my nest, and the men in iron caught me and tried to attack me with their weapons!"

Touya listened to the two behind him before shushing them himself. "Quiet or they might hear us."

The knights could not find the traces of the snake demon they were hunting for. Their quest appearing to be at an end, they cursed their loss before mounting their steeds once more. The sound of the hooves beating within the earth once more rattled the snake demons' ears as they remained together within the darkness of the small cave like dwelling. The knights eventually made their way back towards one of the main dirt paths as they left behind the snake demons they had been tracking.

"Are they gone?" The nervous young snake female asked in a quiver tone. She kept a firm grip onto the redhead close to her.

"I am not sure," Jin responded as he pulled from the frightened snake female. "Let me check. Everyone else stay here. We don't need a blood bath."

Reluctantly, she released Jin so he could check on the situation. Fear embraced her still as she curled up within the back of the darkened cave. The cold of the rocks within the back embedded within her skin, she embraced herself to try and remain calm though it was difficult given the many knights that trailed after her.

Touya looked over at the frightened woman with concern. His scales rubbed against the pebbles and rocks beneath him as he looked at the deep, cloudy eyes of the serpent female. "What is your name?"

"Silver," she answered simply in a submissive tenor. "Who are you two and where is your nest?"

"I am Touya and the big guy who is outside right now is Jin. We left our nest for a moment to find a better place for us to live," Touya explained as he looked back at the entrance, wondering if Jin was okay.

Jin eventually poked his head back into the small cave resting within the rising hillside as he waved over to the two. "It is alright," he hissed. "They are gone from here. Their scent is traveling to the east." Moving slightly from the entrance, he allowed Touya to move out of the way to give way to Silver.

Silver eyed the sunlight with her cloudlike eyes from within the darkness. She feared surfacing with the faint smell of the knight's armor present. Her arms remaining about her shaky figure, she shook her head from side to side eagerly. "I can still smell them…"

"The knights can always be smelt where Touya and I come from," Jin responded with bewilderment.

Silver looked between the two from within the shadows. "You—you smell those horrible men in iron all the time?" She asked softly as she gradually tried to surface from the darkness. "Where I come from, we never smell that awful odor their iron skin gives off."

Touya contorted his features into confusion at her response to the knights. "And where exactly is your nest located? There is hardly a piece of land within Eytheria's boarders that doesn't smell of their wretched steel."

The soft hued scales of ice blue eventually appeared there within the hot sun that peeked through the canopy. Her white hair cascaded down her back this time to show the breasts that any male serpent was used to seeing concerning the fact that no snake demon wore any kind of fabric crafted by humans. She cared not that the two males could see her as she tried to erect herself upon her serpent half. "I…I live further within the woodlands around a village bipdals call Kalrune Village," she responded while pointing to the left of her form. "There is a place made entirely of oddly shaped stones that have bipedal writing within them. They are all lined up one by one far back within the village's limits. People at the village fear ever going there and the men in iron do not dare set foot upon that land. It is my home."

Jin followed the area she was pointing at before moving his elfin ears slightly at her words. "Do you need help finding your nest?" He inquired as he eyed the pale skinned, female.

Silver nodded quickly as she cupped her elbows that held scales upon them that traveled up the back of her arms and down her back to grace her serpent half. "I fear the path before me," she whispered while shaking. "I do not want to be cut by their steel."

Touya looked at Jin with a questionable look on his features. He crossed his arms across his bare, pale chest. "Jin, what about the reason we came here? I thought you came here for the farm!"

"We can do that later," Jin expressed as he headed for the village Silver spoke of. "As you said, it appeared that they will do alright for the moon that should pass tonight. I think we can wait until later to check upon them. Dustin gave us three weeks or so anyways to hunt for a new place. Who knows—maybe this could be it."

The bi-color haired demon could only shake his head with an irritable hiss as he followed after the two within the woods. He wasn't so sure about traveling to a new nest. Most snakes frown upon new faces, especially if they are of male gender. The males were always looked on as adversaries to the alpha and it would be a hard time for the two of them to be accepted at all if more males were to drift onto the scene.

The sun receded from the sky as the three snake demons stayed out of sight within the thick woods to try and make it to Kalrune Village by Silver's instructions. She was too terrified to take the lead considering the knights who attacked her and divided her from her nest. Jin was the one to be up front with Touya covering up the rear. They were interested to see this place she spoke of seeing as it caught their interest—Jin's more so than Touya as the icy beast was resistant to do so.

"It is getting darker the further we go," Touya felt need to point out from the rear as he halted for a moment within the woodlands. "Don't you think it is wise we stop to rest?"

"No, no!" Silver insisted quickly as she spun around to look at the fair skinned male. "We cannot stop here! I do not trust it here! Please, I am sure we are almost there…do not let us stop here in the middle of nowhere!"

Jin could see that the young serpent female was desperate to get back to her nest. He felt bad for her being so young and separated from the others that probably looked over her. His ears wiggling slightly at the sounds about them, he quickly turned his head around to look at the area around them. The trees that were once so vibrant in color were now engulfed with a darkness that lightly spooked him. He had never been within this territory before and he wondered if they were truly lost as he sniffed the air for anything familiar. "I can smell embers," he whispered as he lowered himself down to the ground.

"Man fire you mean," Touya whispered as he slithered to the front to take a look at what was through the brush ahead of them. He was silent as he made his way over to the bushes to peek through the greenery to spy the foot of a village still alive with a bit of activity. The iron on the knights reflected off of the moonlight as his narrow eyes gazed at the scene placed before them. Turning around quickly, he slipped back into the darkness to rejoin the others. "There are knights around," he responded with a slight hiss.

"Silver," Jin said hastily as he looked down at the spooked woman, "is there a way to get to this place without having to go through the village?"

"Of course," she answered shyly as she pointed to the left where the woods stretched on forever it seemed. "There is a back way that my people usually take through there. Just keep low to the ground and the men in iron shouldn't see us."

The two demons did as Silver suggested and hurried through the forest that outlined the village nearby. The smell and sound of the knight's armor put Silver on edge as she followed behind the demon serpents that were kind enough to escort her back to her nest. It put her on edge as they hurried quickly to the back of the village to follow a faint dirt trial that was placed there.

Jin stopped when he noticed the track underneath them that was nearly covered in grass. Sniffing of the side of the road, he wiggled his ears slightly at very faint tracks of snakes. "What is this road? It looks like it was once used by humans before."

"This was an old road that used to lead to my nest before bipdals grew too frightened to head back here," Silver whispered in response over the hooting owls that littered the trees limbs. "My family took over this 'yard', as the beasts named it, and not even the men in iron dare to come back within these limits. It has been abandoned for years."

Touya and Jin took Silver's advice for it as they followed behind her this time once she grew comfortable within the trees that appeared to die the further they went. Crows replaced the owls and mist gathered at the base only to disperse as the trees eventually grew thin the further on they slithered to make way to a human's abandoned graveyard. An old fountain resided within the center of the old burial ground that could barley flow the dingy water, which had gathered within it thanks to the rain every now and then, properly as it was cracked in many places.

The once brilliant fence that used to enclose the area was destroyed and decrepit as spiders made their homes between some of the broken planks as did regular snakes known as cotton mouths within Eytheria. There was a shack or two nearby the place that remained erected but creaked ever so often to show their age.

Jin and the other continued on inward to look at the tombstones that had been withered away thanks to countless rainy days they obviously experienced. Some of the human writing was difficult to read for the redhead serpent as he looked over the oddly shaped stone from top to bottom. Placing the palm of his hand upon the marker before him, he tried to wipe away the dirt and moss that had gathered on it to read what was there.

A hiss echoed throughout the dark graveyard before being joined by several others. The scenery seemed to move and come to life. The shadows grew eyes as the hisses got louder the more Touya concentrated upon it seeing as Jin was oblivious to what was going on. "Jin," he began nervously, "I think we should get out of here."

Jin looked over his shoulder at the anxious Touya before being scared into his senses when a large, stringy coal black haired serpent hissed right within Jin's face from the other side of the tombstone he was looking at. He slunk backward as the dark skinned demon snake's large hands gripping tightly onto the stone beneath him as he rested upon the curved top on the lower part of his abdomen. His scales were pure black except for his underbelly that was a darker shade of gray. Part of his hair covered his face almost making his dark eyes invisible.

"What the hell do you want!" The male exclaimed in an anger filled hiss. "What are you outsiders doing in our nest!" His pure white teeth snapped inches from Jin's face as he continued to crawl steadily after the foreign male.

"Relax; we just came here to drop off this female named Silver!" Jin said aloud as he slunk away from the overbearing foreigner.

Touya made his way up to Jin as he placed his hand upon his friend's shoulder to point at the surrounding area. "We're out number…!"

Jin looked with his partner as their eyes could finally adjust to the darkness about them to show the nearly fifty snake demons that littered the cemetery. Some were coiled up around many of the tombstones while the others hung about the decrepit huts as well as the trees and fences nearby. Some were piled upon one another and so intertwined it was hard to tell how many there truly were. It startled Jin at how many there were around them as he backed up from the ones coming after them with an angry fork of their tongues.

Silver watched from the sidelines as her nesting sight grew restless. Her hands raised she screamed to those within her family, "Please stop!"

The snakes paused within their actions as they looked over at their missing member. One of the female serpents parted through the many that were within view. Her hair was tied back in a long braid and was a pale lavender color from the look of it. Her ears were pointed in tip like Jin's and she had the same eye color her daughter held. The scales of the woman were a dark lavender, while her underbelly was a lighter hue of her dark violet upper scales.

"Silver," she praised before embracing the young female. "I was wondering what happened to you when the iron men attacked!"

"Mamma," Silver responded as she tried to pull from the tight embrace her mother placed her within. "I am okay. These two demons were the ones to help me escape from their horrible steel. I am okay now; I promise!"

Silver's mother turned to the two foreign males before showing her respects to a serpent male regardless. "Thank you for returning my daughter safely to her nest. I never thought I would see her again. I am Mila of the Wind's Nest—mother to Silver and mate to Beldon, the alpha male of the Wind's Nest."

Jin looked at Touya, who merely shrugged at the introduction the woman unleashed to them both. Looking to the mate of the alpha male of the nest she spoke of, Jin tilted his head slightly to the side with a twist of his mouth that expression confusion. "The Wind's Nest? Why is it called that?"

"Please, Mila," one of the male serpents hissed nearly to cut off any words she dared present to the unknown serpent men. "Do not speak of anymore to these outsiders. They know nothing of us as it should be!"

"Do not say such things to those who are identical to us in every way!" Mila boldly scolded to the dark serpent that crept up on Jin earlier. "At least they are not creatures that walk on two legs! Do our laws not state that anything whispered is to remind between those who have but the glistening pedals of the serpent Lord?"

Everyone was quiet as they hissed whispers amongst themselves. It made Touya and Jin both nervous as they were not sure what was about to happen. They dared not be in the middle of a fight with so many demons nearby to tear them both apart without much effort. The two looked to themselves still as Jin remained up front, curious still about what was being said and done within the graveyard.

"You speak too boldly, Mila," a deep voice responded in the crowd that seemed full of rules and regulations as well as honor and respect. Some of the serpents parted or merely turned back to better things as the short, albino haired male with yellow scales and fair white skin made his way through the crowd. It was an obvious albino naga to Jin and Touya who were nearby.

Hearing of the male that spoke, Mila merely bowed her head in respect as she folded her hands there in front of her. "I apologize, Beldon," she responded remorsefully. "I merely wished to thank those two males who saved our daughter, Silver."

Beldon looked to Jin and Touya with a bit of a growl within his throat. He wasn't too used to foreign males coming into his nest but it was his daughter out of the many he had. Looking over to Silver, the strict father shook his white hair at her with a groan. "Silver, I cannot believe you almost let those beasts get you. I told you to stay close to me!"

Silver could only lower her head respectfully to her father as she massaged her hands a bit.

Beldon didn't forget the two serpent males that saved his daughter as he turned to them with a sigh. "Forgive my daughter for troubling you. She is the youngest of her twenty siblings." Reaching out his hand to Jin and Touya, he waved for them within the boundaries. "You can stay at my nest if you wish to." He caught the hesitation within the two of them as he slithered over the dead areas of the ground that were once covered in grass to head to his nest. "Do not worry about anyone, you two. They will not harm you unless you give them reason to."

Jin followed after Beldon after hesitation before being followed behind with Touya. "Can I ask what exactly is up with this place? I have never seen a place so isolated from the humans."

Touya watched from behind his taller partner, Jin, as the snakes nearby watched the two of them closely. Their eyes were bright from the moonlight reflecting and shown brightly within the darkness around them. It put him on edge as he followed the family through the numerous tombstones to the very far east of the cemetery. There were several snake demons littering the vast area. Boulders that beleaguered the high rising hillside kept shade on them as well as a few of the trees that still looked quite alive. A few more markers of where humans died were nearby though some slightly destroyed and in ruin.

"We took over this part of land years ago," Beldon explained as he headed for the center of the nest where he usually was curled up with his mate. "It used to be part of that village you saw earlier, I am sure, when you came here. When the demon snakes grew in population a few hundred years ago, the bipedal beasts refused to return here to bury their disease ridden kin."

Silver was guided to her siblings soon enough that were older than her and had mates and children of their own. She looked fearful to leave though slightly relieved to be back at home.

"Even the men in iron refuse to come back here for they would be strangled and bitten to death by all of us," Beldon continued as he watched Silver closely to make sure she made it over to her sisters alright. "No amount of them could take down our nests combined."

"How many nests are there?" Touya felt need to ask as he made himself comfortable nearby seeing as they were an invited guest within the nesting site.

"There are at least six," the alpha male responded as he coiled up to speak to the strangers. "There are six different nests that harbor the element that the great serpent Lord held in his six arms."

Jin coiled up his ruby red scales that rubbed against one another as he did so to listen to Beldon's story. "What serpent lord?" He wondered in disbelief.

The snakes that herd Jin ask such a thing seemed to gawk and pause in shock. They had all come to know the lord they praised and assumed everyone else did as well that was of serpent decent. Beldon listened to the hiss of whispers that flew across his nest as he remained there trying to collect his thoughts within the time being.

"The Lord of the serpent kind," Beldon explained with a motion of his hands, "Drake. He had many different forms but one thing was for sure and that was he had six arms that held six different elements of the earth. He held the main elements within his hands: earth, wind, water, fire, darkness, light, ice, and death. With these elements, he created the world that those two legged beasts walk upon."

Touya and Jin looked at one another as they listened to the fairytale the snake alpha demon was spouting. "So, there are six nests here?" Touya felt need to ask while the tip of his tail flipped to and fro ideally.

Beldon nodded as he turned to his mate, "Please, go get me and our guests something to eat, Mila." With a simple gesture of his hand, she did such without much thought on the situation. "There are six nests and each nest is governed by an alpha male that was said to have an ancestor chosen by Lord Drake himself. Each male picks a male from their children to take over their spot when they one day are to pass on either by wretched bipedal beasts or by natural causes."

"It appears you have quite the family going on here," Jin remarked as he looked at all the serpents that seemed to eye them in nervousness. "Our nest only has five members counting my friend and me."

Beldon blinked in surprise at that number as he moved his serpent body slightly. "You must be cursed to have such a small family."

"Dustin is our leader and he had a larger family only to be killed and disgraced by man," Jin spoke up without much thought.

Touya looked quickly over at Jin to nudge his friend gently with his elbow wishing he hadn't told him such a secret. His eyes meeting with his friend's Touya shook his head discreetly. "Do not say such things," he whispered. "That will only fuel their hate for humans, and it is best we don't start problems."

Jin could only apologize with his sight as he rubbed his arm that had been nudged by the ice serpent.

Beldon said not a thing as he looked over between the two snake demons to gaze deep within their eyes. The bright blue eyes of the crimson scaled snake demon caught his attention as he shifted slightly from his posture. "You," he responded simply as he pointed to Jin that was directly in front of him.

Jin and Touya both looked at Beldon until Jin noticed it was he that was being pointed at. "Who, me?"

"Yes, you," Beldon responded as he waved the demon over with his fingers. "Come here-I wish to speak with you and you alone."

Hearing such a thing, Jin paused as he looked back at his partner with a simple shift of his ears. Touya merely offered a shrug as he slunk slightly backwards. "It is okay, Jin. Go ahead and speak with him. I will just go look around this place a bit more."

Beldon caught Touya's words on the wind as he smirked a bit at the strange demon. "It is best to be wise where you wander. These serpents are very territorial and won't hesitate to defend their nests."

"I am sure I can handle it," Touya responded with a nod. His eyes wandered over to Jin as he looked at him to send a few silent words of caution to him before parting from the nesting area.

Jin slithered closer to the alpha male of the Wind's Nest on his light crimson underbelly. Erecting himself up steadily to eye the stronger male, he tilted his head to the side confused. "What was it you wished to speak to me about?"

"You noticed my daughter," Beldon remarked as he uncoiled his serpent half to head deeper within the dead woods about their section. "She is the only daughter of mine that has yet to find a mate or at least someone to give her the joy of womanhood."

"Well, she is a young one though of age," Jin responded as he followed behind Beldon.

"But she is of age," the albino serpent felt need to point out as he made it to his destination. Another rickety looking building obviously was hidden within the large cemetery and where Beldon on occasion would stay to rest from time to time. "I noticed your eyes and your friend's. You are not from around Eytheria, are you?"

"No, we came from beyond Eytheria's boarders," Jin explained as he crossed his arms over his chest.

Beldon grabbed onto Jin's chin so he could look at his eyes better with his own bright red. His fingers dug a bit within the demon's thick skin to keep him still so he could continue to do so. He could see the slight irritation on Jin's face with it being held the way it was but he ignored it for the moment. "Your eyes are a different blue from what I have seen. And there is something about them…something that they hold."

Jin managed to pull his chin from Beldon's grasp as he wiggled his face a bit as if to get the stiffness out of it. "Well, I am different from the other snake demons around here seeing as I control the wind and my friend controls the ice that forms every winter."

The albino alpha looked at Jin in disbelief as he chuckled within the depths of his throat. "I bet," he scoffed.

Seeing and hearing that he didn't believe, Jin looked up at the sky a moment to feel the wind caress the back of his body to indicate what direction it was coming from. Raising his right hand up into the air, he waved it backward to beckon the air to blow quite harshly from the opposite direction.

Beldon felt the wind blowing now against his back as he looked behind him to feel the wind currents caressing him from a different direction so quickly. "The wind cannot change directions so fast without the Great Drake's say so."

"Do you feel it blowing in two different directions?" Jin asked before opening the palm of his hand that he held up in the air. "The wind does what I tell it to and it has ever since my birth." The currents quickly gathered up on the serpent's hand to wrap around his skin like a white ribbon. "It has been my only friend until I came across Touya."

"You must speak on behalf of Lord Drake!" Beldon exclaimed as he grabbed onto his wrist for a moment to get his attention. "What was your name again?"

"Jin," he answered simply.

"Jin, I want of you to please take my Silver and give her the joy of womanhood as well as give her children your powers—and your eyes," Beldon insisted eagerly.

The crimson tip of the serpent's tail tapped upon the ground in thought as he recollected the image of Silver in his mind. It had been awhile since he had lain with any woman whatsoever and he was beginning to miss it. "If that is your desire, I will do it. It would be my pleasure to do so."

"Just wait for her," Beldon said as he pointed back to the nesting area that came from. "Her mother and sisters will get her ready for you to have her."

The redhead knew that it took some time to get the females ready to mate. It wasn't a simple process when it came to a male guiding a female into womanhood. The young female always had to be properly groomed before being handed over to the male. After the seed of the male was planted, the male fed the female as if she were pregnant instantly. It was a task Jin was used to and didn't mind doing until he was to leave to check on the girls back at the Cormac Farm.

Beldon headed back into the dead woodlands to get back to the cemetery where the rest of the serpent demons were. Jin followed after him knowing that it was pointless to remain out in the middle of an area he was unfamiliar with. The nests obviously stretched for miles and he wasn't above getting lost within their territory.

--

It was a little deeper within the night that Silver was soon presentable. The nine other sisters she had guided her to where Beldon had Jin waiting. Each sister had a candle lit that they sheltered from the nightly breeze with their hands cupped about the flickering flames. It was always a test of the wind to see if it felt the union was acceptable towards it. If one of the flames were to fizzle out thanks to the howling wind, the two possible pairs could not have children.

Jin was unfamiliar with their certain customs but he put up with them while waiting for Silver to appear before him. He could see that her hair was groomed and washed and pulled back into a braid much like her mother's to leave way to the necklace that graced her soft, pallid neck. The diamonds that the serpents often came across glistened from the moonlight as he watched the timid, young, Silver finally there before him standing just at his chest.

"All of the candles are still lit," Beldon explained as he pointed to another human shack that Jin and the others stood before. "I pray this ceremony will be the one to make me proud out of all the others that my children have performed."

The deep, playful blue eyes of the wind serpent looked to Silver as he reached for her dainty hand to bring into his to try and settle her fears when her family departed from the scene. "It will be okay, Silver. I won't hurt you. I promise you that."

Silver looked up at Jin with a mere nod as she tightened her grip on his hand tightly. "I know…I am just nervous with all things told to me…"

"It will be okay," he whispered once more before sliding into the old hut that hadn't been used in years. The inside was filled with spiders and regular snakes as well as a desk and two beds that met end to end close to the wall. Dust and cobwebs covered both areas as he made his way on inside with the diary he kept close to him. Seeing as he couldn't have it on him during the ceremony, Jin placed it on the dusty table to let it rest.

"You keep a bipedal's trinket?" Silver asked as she looked at the item he put down.

"It is called a diary," Jin answered as he nudged her face away from the item she was looking at with his nose placed upon her cheek. "Humans write it in whenever they need to express themselves and I do it often myself."

"Hu—hue—mans," Silver broke down as she looked back with the playful eyes of the serpent next to her. "I have never heard that word before. We call them many things but not that."

"What do you call the knights then?" Jin wondered with a shift of his ears.

"Men in iron," she answered simply. "Or killers, beasts, tainted blood—they have many names, but I am not allowed to repeat them. It is forbidden to speak of them unless to warn others."

He placed his hand upon Silver's bare shoulder gently with a nod to her. "Let's not worry about that anymore. Obviously they are far from here and would dare not endanger their lives within these woods." Jin's mouth touched of Silver's gently to taste of the female granted to him. He cupped the back of her head to keep her relaxed as his fingers explored her pulled back tresses as if to massage her skull. Pulling back from her lips to allow her to breath, he nudged her pallid cheek once more with his nose gently to feel of her soft skin. "Don't be so frightened," he encouraged in a hoarse whisper. "The more frightened, the more it will hurt."


	10. Chapter 10

**_Author's Notes_**: Sorry for the delay but I was working on my one-shot for Halloween and I was working on my personal one-shot and college work so—a lot of working. I never turn from those little stories unless reviews call my attention so it is best to review and let me know people are at least enjoying what is being written. Reviews always grab my attention as do IMs and e-mails. So, either way, I am listening.

Due to adult content in this chapter, I had to remove a few paragraphs. xP Sorry, guys.

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The crescent moon remained high within the cloudy sky that growled heavy with thunder. Droplets of the rain that the darkened clouds held dripped from the sky, tapping upon the objects below contently before rapidly beating on the leaves of the trees within the coming moments. The pointed ears of the redheaded snake demon could hear the rain from within the small hut. Jin paid it no mind as he guided Silver over towards the bed of the abandoned human building with a few tender bites to her pallid flesh to show he was going to be dominate over her.

Silver listened to the serpent demon as she lowered her body a bit submissively. Her very soft blue scales shined within the moonlight as she slithered about on the bed that Jin was guiding her towards. Her heart was thumping against her chest harshly in apprehension and anticipation. She knew what was to come and wanted it but slightly feared it.

Jin's strong hands slipped into Silver's to hold onto her tenderly as his crimson and cherry underbelly scales intertwined with her soft blue and white. The male serpent hissed for a moment as he kept the female pinned beneath him, his face coming closer to hers within the darkness so he could place his mouth upon her own. His long, forked tongue glided gracefully within the female's mouth to taste of her warm breath and the saliva there that graced his wet muscle when he wrapped it about her own.

The flowing ashen hair of Silver cascaded over the sides of the bed to pool upon the floor as she moaned against the lips of Jin that danced across her own. Fires of excitement rushed through her body making her hands tighten into fists. Parting from the wind serpent's warm mouth, she arched her back slightly off of the dirty fabrics beneath her, Silver's serpent half squirming and withering about underneath the redheaded, foreign snake demon.

Feeling her movement, Jin tightened his serpent half to restrict her from wiggling anymore as he feared her trying to leave. Pulling back from the kiss he planted on her cheek that was slightly covered in scales itself; he slipped his forked tongue out at Silver, tickling the tip of her nose as he did so. "Now, now, don't move away from me," Jin advised, his warm breath caressing her scaly skin.

"I—I won't," Silver promised with a small shake of her head, her breath labored from the taste of the sexual experience. "I promise I won't." Her slender, fingers graced the cheeks of the male serpent on top of her to show she didn't wish for him to leave her or for her to leave herself.

-- 

Both breathing heavily, Jin lowered himself down on top of Silver for a moment to feel of her warm, sweating body. His cheek resting upon her chest, he rolled his hands up her body while remaining buried within her form. "It has been awhile since I have lain on top of a female before," Jin chuckled within the back of his throat. "Being around men all day, you get deprived of that."

"Did—you enjoy that?" Silver asked, wrinkling her brow in wonder.

"Of course I did," Jin answered as he hefted himself up off of her. "The question is, did you?"

Silver offered a nervous smile to the wind serpent with a nod. "I did…I am just anxious about the thought of having babies." Her gaze wandered about the dusty, manmade building about them, catching her breath all the while. "I have seen my sisters and brothers do it, but I can hardly picture myself doing so." Silver's hand rested upon the warm cheek of Jin, her thumb scrubbing the scaly skin tenderly. "Did you have any children from the Lord Drake?"

Jin wrinkled his nose as he shrugged, "Well, I have never heard of it put that way, but yes, I have had kids." His fingers rolling across Silver's long, flowing alabaster strands, he sighed slightly. "I had many children, but I never had a chance to spend time with them once they hatched. I did have many within my old nesting site, but I traveled a lot, so I hardly got to see them."

"You were asked to have babies a lot?" Silver asked, tilting her head in wonder.

"Yes, because of my eye color that everyone liked," Jin responded. "I wouldn't worry about being a good or bad mother, Silver. I am sure you will do just fine." Jin slithered off of the bed, taking his diary in his hands so he could head for the door. "I am sure we can both learn to be good parents together."

Silver offered a smile within the faintly lit room, nodding at Jin as his hand graced the doorknob. "Where are you going now?"

"Silver, I want you to stay here for the remainder of the night. I need to be somewhere else right now, but I swear to you I will be back," Jin promised, his scales rubbing against the dusty, creaky floorboards. "There were a few rabbits and bird eggs that I found and placed them within that wooden, human made object. I would eat them while they are fresh."

Silver watched as Jin pointed towards the rickety, large wooden box near the foot of the bed she was within. Her scales dancing about in the playful moonlight, rubbing against one another as she shifted to the end of the bed to open up the dusty box to see the animals he caught. "Thank you, Jin," she whispered softly in appreciation. "I hope the serpent Lord will watch over you as you travel, Jin, and bring you back to me."

Jin wasn't sure what she meant as he scratched the back of his head, but he waved to her before departing from the hut. Shutting the door behind him silently, he released a rejuvenated sigh. "Now, to find Touya and head back to the farm." His crimson scales wiggled about on the floor, heading towards the thick woodlands that encased the old human graveyard.

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When the sun kissed the sky, the rooster within the Cormac Farm crowed loudly as he remained perched on the wooden roof that covered the porch. Puffing his chest out, he crowed several times to try and rouse those on the farm. The dew rolling off the tips of the grass blades, the farm animals listened to the morning call as they drank the droplets off of the pasture.

The water dripping down the window added more chill within the air inside of Neda's bedroom that she shared with her sister, Blythe. Feeling the cold envelop her, she roused steadily from her slumber to hear the crowing cock more clearly now. The room slightly blurry in sight thanks to sleep in her eyes, Neda rubbed her weary eyes to see better as she sat upright in bed. Sighing at another day being granted to her, Neda embraced her knees within the warmth of her covers, looking over at her sister's bed to find it empty.

"Blythe?" She wondered softly, pushing the covers off of her body to get to her small, chilly feet. Grabbing onto the blanket, which was folded up neatly on top of her wooden vanity, Neda wrapped her cold body within it, allowing the tassels of the woolen blanket to tap against her form as the woven coverlet steadily warmed her. Her hand gracing the doorknob of her bedroom, she opened it to allow herself outside to wander to the top of the stairs.

The sound of utensils being moved about in the kitchen echoed up the steps, prompting Neda to walk cautiously down the stairs. Her hand holding onto the wooden railing, she headed down the bottom of the staircase to find the male knight, Thane, at the kitchen counter. The sight of the young knight made her slightly angered as she wished he would go back to the castle walls instead of bugging her and her sister. Keeping her attitude in check, she made her presence known with a simple clear of her throat.

Thane heard Neda behind him, making sure she was there, he looked over his shoulder. "Good morning, Neda," the blond knight responded with a slight yawn. "It is good to see you are awake."

"Where is Blythe?" Neda asked as she made her way over towards the dinner table to sit down.

"She is outside feeding the animals," Thane responded as he worked away at the eggs he was cooking. "Since you were late in waking up, she went ahead and took care of the animals early." Taking the spatula in his hand to mess with the eggs he was making, he looked back over at Neda for a moment before turning his focus back on making breakfast. "I thought I would go ahead and make breakfast after my guarding during the night in Kalrune."

Neda crossed her arms on top of the wooden table, covered in the intricately designed cloth. Her hand cupping her forehead, she ran her fingers through her stringy, soft brown hair. "Can you cook?"

"I can cook a few things," Thane answered as he placed the eggs on separate plates with some grits as well. "I have to take care of myself as well as my parents sometimes so I learned." Fixing up the plate a bit more, Thane made his way over towards the table to place the plate filled with warm food in front of Neda with the bread basket and butter nearby. "I hear your birthday will be soon. How old will you be?" He asked, putting his own plate down on the cloth so he could begin eating.

"I will be eleven," Neda responded, taking the silverware within her hands to start poking at her food as she always did. "I don't want to celebrate it though. There is no point in celebrating anything anymore."

Thane knew she was still dwelling upon the death of her parents as he sipped the drink he poured himself earlier. He knew it would be difficult for her to get over it, so he said not a word about the subject matter fearing he would worsen it. "Do you feel comfortable with me being here, Neda?"

Feeling the question a bit random, Neda hesitated in answering. "No," she lied with a hidden grumble, averting her gaze. "Blythe wants you here."

"I know that, but what do **_you_** think?" Thane asked once more, looking at the young girl across the table.

Neda didn't really enjoy Thane's presence within or about the farm. For some reason it really irritated her. She wanted to be alone with her sister, but her sister was intent on seeing Thane a lot lately. Neda had already lost her parents and now she felt she was losing her sister to the handsome knight. "I just want everything to be as it once was…," she mumbled sorrowfully.

Thane plucked a piece of bread from the bread platter to place upon his own breakfast plate. "Neda," Thane began with a piteous sigh, "I wish none of this had happened, and I apologize that it did; however, I think it is best you try and make the most of what you have now. You still have your sister with you, and she is trying everything she can to make you happy."

Neda felt her face burn in anger at Thane's words she found unsympathetic. Slamming her palms down on the table beneath her, she shook her head at him. "You have no idea how hard it is to lose someone, do you?" Neda asked, trying to keep her temper under control.

"Neda, calm down," Thane insisted with a raise of his hand. "I didn't mean to offend you." Getting up from his seat, Thane pushed his plate aside for the time being so he could reach out to the upset Neda. "I can understand your feelings towards losing someone special, Neda. Being a knight, I see many people pass on unfairly. It isn't just and I know how upsetting it feels even if I do not know them personally. But they are people I see everyday and to not see them the next—it hurts to know I didn't do my job."

Neda shook her head at Thane still, turning her gaze from the knight that was within her house. "I need to go for a walk," she almost whispered, nudging her way past Thane to head back up the stairs.

"I knew that wouldn't go well," Thane sighed as he sat back down to finish his breakfast.

--

An hour or so later, Neda resurfaced in her farm boots and white ankle length gown with long sleeves that had an embroidered pattern of a vine with roses sprouted on them in purple at the base of the skirt line, traveling up towards the brown belt she looped around her waist. Stepping out onto the porch, she made her way down to the farmland that was filled with the sound of horses braying, cows mooing, and hammers wailing on top of nails still due to the barn still being incomplete. Wrapping her arms about her chest, she walked over towards the corral.

Neda folded her arms on top of the highest plank that kept the farm animals inside to watch the horses and cows move about within their confinement. A sigh passing through her nostrils, she watched as the horses parted to reveal the young baby of Stella she had named Black Rose. Lifting her head slightly off of her folded hands, Neda whistled over to the young horse.

"Black Rose," she called, "come over here." When the colt refused to budge, she picked up a bit of hay on the side to entice the small beast.

Spying the hay within reach prompted the little colt to dash over towards Neda without hesitation to dig into the treat that was given to her. Her mouth wrapping about the hay, Rose ate at the feed with a content whinny.

"Hey, Black Rose," Neda whispered with a sigh, "at least you are happy. I cannot imagine finding happiness again with my parents now gone." Reaching her hand through the planks, she rubbed the growing filly's muzzle with her fingertips to try and find comfort within the feel of the colt's fur.

Pulling back from the time she was spending with the young horse, she walked back over towards the towering tree that she used to draw in front of and, now, held her parent's grave markers. Watching as they were outlined with the sunlight, Neda fought back the tears that dared spill forth as she clutched tightly onto her sleeves to keep herself from breaking down. Neda walked over towards the tree regardless to look out at the landscape of Eytheria that rested before her.

The vast plain set before her was lined with distant woodlands and mountaintops that were miles away from her house. She spied the dirt road that was just a few feet from her and seemed to beg her to walk out upon. Neda looked back over her shoulder to make sure everyone about the farm area was working and not watching her. She knew being so young, it was forbidden for her to walk out on the paths at all without an adult accompanying her, but Neda wanted to get away from the farm, even if for a little while.

Pulling out her sketch booklet she had hidden within her dress pocket, Neda walked on towards the rocky road to follow it towards the castle walls. She always wanted to go visit the castle of Eytheria and it would be a nice break from the farm. _I am sorry, Blythe_, Neda thought to herself as she headed onward without a word to her sister, _but I cannot handle being here much longer_.

It was nerve-wracking as Neda made her way away from her home. She was always taught never to do such a thing. As a young child, she was told horror stories about doing such a thing by herself, and they carried a fearful scar within her heart. "I can do this, I can do this," Neda repeated to herself as she nervously made her way throughout the vast plain that made her feel vulnerable to attacks. Watching the scenery pass her by with the Eytherian castle walls resting way off within the distance, Neda stopped within the middle of the road with a nervous shiver.

"It'll take forever for me to get there on foot," she sighed, looking back over her shoulder at the farm that she could just see within the distance. Taking in a deep breath, Neda shook her head, trying to rid herself of anymore doubt. "I cannot be scared of this road forever. I have to be strong…like mamma was when she went in after dad during the fire."

Neda treaded through the plain without a worry on her mind throughout the coming hours. However, the sun began to recede from view, making the day get darker and less inviting for her as she continued to travel towards the castle. Stopping at a fork within the road she was on, she rested against the sign there that indicated what road went where.

"It is getting late and I will never make it there in time," Neda sighed. "I can't go back now. It will be dark by the time I do, and all the demons come out at night."

As the young farm girl rested against the sign wondering what to do in helplessness, the sound of hooves beating against the road could be heard against the ground. The sound getting louder by the minute, Neda felt her heart starting to escalate in rhythm. Not sure what or who was coming, she looked down all pathways to be ready for whoever was coming.

The beating hooves of the young stallion came to a quick halt when the rider on the back of the beast caught the young farm girl there near the sign, looking quite fearful. The gray tinted horse with black speckles on his coat reared back slightly at being ordered to stop so quickly. The young man on top looked like he came from a village judging by his attire. His hair was snow white that reached his mid-back and pulled into a low ponytail. He had sandals about his pallid feet with a few anklets that chimed together when he moved. He sported a vest that was open to reveal his well, toned chest. The brown vest had a design of a winged beast in white on the back. The russet colored pants he wore had several designs upon them in soft blue, red, and gold fabrics; they were held up by a black belt.

"Are you lost?" The young man asked with his narrow sky blue eyes gazing at her, appearing to be in his late twenties. "You don't appear to be around here."

"Neither do you," Neda responded in return, rubbing her arms to keep herself warm. "I was trying to get to the Eytherian Castle."

"That is quite a ways from where you are standing," he replied over the horse chomping on his bit. "I doubt a young woman like you would enjoy walking there alone. I can give you a ride on my horse if that is your desire."

Neda didn't wish to walk any further on the road by herself. Accepting the man's offer, she opened her hand to his once he extended it and helped herself on board. "Thank you," she whispered in relief, holding onto the young male's waist. "I didn't wish to travel much further all by myself. I am Neda Cormac from the Cormac Farm."

"I know where that is," the young man responded, nudging the stallion beneath him to get the horse going. "And to answer your first question, no, I am not from around here either. I am a winter elf, and I come from the winter hill tops of Eytheria. I came into town to obtain food."

"A winter elf?" Neda wondered aloud as she held onto the male. "I thought winter elves were barbaric, loners and ate the snow creatures that lived about that mountain's."

"We're not barbaric," the elf responded, looking over his shoulder at the young girl briefly. "Just because we kill creatures and eat meat, doesn't make us any less barbaric than humans are." Throwing his hair over his shoulder, he showed the pointed ears he had that were concealed by his long locks. "My name is Nash Darwin, by the way, of the Qu'lyn Clan."

Neda wasn't sure what to say towards that seeing as she knew very little of the winter elves that lived in the snow capped mountains. All she knew was they were hunters, rarely seen by Eytherian humans seeing as they mostly enjoyed their solitude, and they were so used to the cold that they could walk around it in their bare feet and not feel a thing. To them, the winter was like summer to normal creatures. Some even said their blood was made of ice. Not saying anything towards the matter, she held onto the snow elf regardless as he helped her towards the castle gates.

--

The bushes parted late within the coming evening as Jin moved the berry bush leaves out of his way to see what was going on at the Cormac Farm since his leave of the place. His elfin ears wiggling slightly, he took in the sights and smells to see what he could find. Touya was right behind him, lowered to the ground, wishing not to be pelted with another rock again by the angered young girls.

"How does it look?" Touya asked from where he was hiding behind the towering demonic serpent.

"Everything is the same," Jin answered as he continued to look about the farm cautiously from where he was hiding. "I don't know for sure though. I haven't caught the sight of the youngest sister yet." Twisting his mouth to the side in thought, he slipped further down the edge of the forest to get closer to the farm house. "I need to look through the window or go inside of the house to know for certain."

"Are you crazy!" Touya exclaimed in wonder as he hurried after his friend. "Jin, you cannot go in there without that knight killing you!"

"Touya, I don't smell any knight iron," Jin chuckled, continuing onward towards the house regardless. "I am sure he is not here."

Grabbing onto Jin's tail that was within reach, the ice serpent tried to stop Jin from continuing onward. "You don't know that for sure!"

Jerking his tail back out of Touya's grip, he held it within his own hands with an irritable snort at his worrying partner. "I promise I will be careful. I swear, you worry way too much." The crimson scaled snake demon slithered up to the side of the house where he knew he would be less likely to be spotted. His fingers gripped onto the windowsill that allowed him to view the kitchen area best. Cautiously watching the scene from the corner of the window, he listened in on the conversation that was being held within the house.

"She said she was going for a walk?" Blythe asked Thane at the table with nervousness in her tone.

"That is what she told me," Thane sighed, shaking his golden hair about. "I am sorry that this happened. I didn't mean to tread on such deep water with her."

"It is not your fault, Thane," Blythe whimpered as she sat down, shaking nervously. "Oh I pray to the heavens she is alright…"

Jin pulled himself from sight of the window, coiling downward to think on the conversation he heard. "It sounds like one of the Cormac sisters has gone missing. These young girls are such trouble." Scratching the side of his head in thought, he took in the vaguely familiar scent that the youngest sister held; he started to follow it behind the house where the road rested.

"Jin, what about the snake clans back at that old cemetery behind that village, and what about Dustin? You have made way too many commitments," Touya pointed out eagerly as he slithered after his friend. "You need to take on one or two, but not all three!"

Sighing through his nostrils, the redheaded demon stopped in his tracks to look at Touya with a shake of his head. "I can take on all three, and I will show you so! You and the others think I am irresponsible, but I am not." Cupping his chin, Jin's eyes grazed the ground beneath him in wonder at what to do. Snapping his fingers, he pointed at the ice serpent in front of him. "I want you to go back to Dustin and the others and tell them about the serpent clans in that cemetery. I know he might not like the idea, but I know we can make this work."

"How?" Touya asked sarcastically.

"I don't know, Touya, but we will find a way. Just go and tell him, please—for me?" Jin begged, showing as much innocents as he could within his baby blue eyes.

Touya puffed up like a blowfish before releasing his anger in a sigh, shaking his head in disapproval. "Alright, fine," he grumbled, throwing his hands up in surrender. "I will go and tell Dustin about what is going on, but you owe me, Jin for picking up your slack."

Jin waved Touya away eagerly with several nods, "I know, Touya, I know. I have to hunt down that girl now. I hope she isn't hurt." Turning around quickly, the redhead hurried at great speed down the dirt road before him to hunt for the missing Cormac sister.


	11. Chapter 11

**_Author's Notes_**: Sorry, sorry guys. School was a pain in the ass, and I was doing some artwork for my DA page, so I apologize. I am trying to catch up on my stories. Here is the next chapter. Enjoy.

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The hooves of the stallion the winter elf was riding upon with Neda beat into the cobblestone ground, galloping towards the market place of Eytheria where Neda had wished to go. The elf pulled on the reins of the horse to make the speckled beast stop in the middle of the large, market square. "Well, here it is," Nash responded as he looked over his shoulder at Neda.

Neda took in the sights that the setting sun illuminated with its mixed colors of soft pinks, purples, and reds. Dismounting from the horse without help, Neda gazed up at the towering houses and the few booths, which she could see within the dim light. "So this is the market place?" She asked Nash, her eyes still locked on the beauty of the residences side by side.

"You must really be isolated at your farm," Nash responded, nudging his stallion with his heels to make it move forward slightly. "This is Eytheria's Market Square as well as homes to the citizens of Eytheria who are lucky to live here so close to the castle."

"I used to come up here with my dad when I was growing up, but he stopped taking me when the roads to and from our farm got dangers thanks to demons," Neda explained. Crossing her arms upon her chest, she nodded to the winter elf kindly. "Thank you for the ride. I appreciate it."

"You are welcome, young lady," the winter elf said in return to her kindness. Nudging his horse gently, he guided him onward into the many alleyways and roads that littered the town behind Eytheria Castle's walls.

Neda held her sketch book in front of her dress, her boots kicking at the firm ground beneath her to watch as some of the stores were closing up for the coming night hours. She let her feet wander throughout the center square of the Eytherian Market, stopping at a bench she gently bumped into. Rolling the palm of her hand under her dress to keep it from wrinkling as she was always told to do by her mother, Neda sat down on the wooden bench to start sketching, roughly the sights before her. "It is much different from the farm. It's hard to even see the forest beyond the walls."

Sketching to the best of her ability for the coming hours, the sunset was soon covered by a blanket of stars. Neda continued to draw upon the blank sheets of paper she had until a droplet of water mated with the parchment she was currently drawing upon. Gazing up at the sky, another drop of rain tapped upon Neda's booklet and her tanned skin. The thunder rolling in the clouds to warn of the coming rainstorm, Neda quickly closed her book and got up to try and run into the alleyways where she prayed she would be safe and dry.

As she tried to stay out of the downpour, which soon started, Neda shivered with a chatter of her teeth near a wooden house her back was resting against. "Why is it raining tonight? The rain is always so cold at this time of night, and I didn't bring my coat."

The lights dimming one by one inside of the houses and out, Neda sighed through her nostrils, left there in a dark alleyway with nobody to keep her company. Sitting down on the damp ground, she brought her knees to her chest. She shedding her tears all to herself, Neda wished silently that her parents were there with her.

--

The rain mattered little to Jin even if the touch of the water was cold to his crimson colored scales. Slithering up to the risen gate, he sniffed the ground quickly to try and pick up the scent of the farm girl, whose trail was being washed away by the rain. "Did she go beyond the wall?" Jin wondered aloud to himself as he made his way to the crack in the wall he could use to get in and out through.

The serpent demon's scales squeezing through the crack, he made his way to the other side. Staying hidden in the darkness that the walls created, Jin's baby blue eyes shifted about the roads before him cautiously in attempts to spy some of the guards. Through the downpour, Jin could make out the figure of one of them standing on duty to his left. The smell of the iron made him want to hiss in displeasure, but he held back his uneasiness around the smell of the guards before quickly darting out of hiding to slip beyond the corner and down the road before him.

"I wish the rain didn't come at a time like this," Jin grumbled as he stopped at a four way road up ahead, wondering where to go next. Erecting himself on his serpent tail, he tried to take in the scents around him. The faint smell of the youngest Cormac daughter was overwhelmed by the rain and scent of wet iron and stray dogs. "This is hopeless…there is only one other option I have."

Turning back around quickly, Jin headed back down the long pathway he was upon to hunt for the right house. Dashing into a nook on the left where a door resided for the entrance of the house, Jin took in the scent of the person behind it quickly before knocking on the door with his knuckles.

The lights came on from the other side of the mahogany carved door as did the sound of a cat meowing and hissing. The light that Jin could clearly see shining from under the crack of the door was blocked by someone on the other side. Handle of the door turning, the woman opened the door. "Tabby, hush!" She demanded at her hissing cat. Her eyes, void of color gazing out at the darkness she could only see, the woman shrugged. "Hello? Who is there?"

"Lily, it is me, Jin," Jin responded as he held onto her upper arms gently. "I have an emergency—may I come in?"

"Oh—Jin—of course, come in," Lily allowed as she stepped aside for the snake demon she could not see.

Jin made his way carefully inside, making sure his serpent tail didn't touch the middle aged woman. Careful of the cat, who wasn't too fond of him, Jin made his way over towards Lily's bed, where he perched himself upon the covers, his tail coiling about upon the floor. "I am sorry for waking you up so late, but I have a problem. One of the young girls I watch over is missing, and I followed her trail to beyond these walls."

Lily wrapped her cold body in the woolen blanket with many white tassels hanging from the edges, listening to Jin's story with a worried frown. "Oh my, and it is raining outside. She will freeze to death or get very sick if she doesn't get inside!"

"That is why I came here, and I am asking this big favor of you. Can you please go out there and hunt her down for me?" Jin wondered, fidgeting slightly with his hands. "I know I should be the one out there, but—I am not allowed here, and if the guards spy me, I will be killed."

Lily sighed, not wishing to go out at this hour, but she knew she couldn't allow a poor girl to freeze to death in the middle of the night. Feeling her way towards her closet, she pulled out her cotton dress, which rested near her heels, and a shirt with long sleeves and white, faux fur on the collar line. "What is her name?" Lily asked, heading for the bathroom to change in private.

"Her name is Neda I think," Jin answered as he kept his eyes on the territorial cat, who was eyeing him rather oddly.

"You 'think'?" Lily scoffed as she reappeared with her attire on. "Where are my boots?"

Jin wiggled his ears slightly at her words, grabbing up her boots she was hunting for to hand to her once he slid off of the bed. "Here—I don't know their names too well, but I am sure that is her name."

Lily accepted her boots from Jin, slipping them on her feet quickly with a nod to the serpent demon before raising her hood up over her head to protect her hair from the rain. "Alright then, I will go out and find her. Please stay right here with the lights off. It is abnormal for lights in any house to be on at this hour. The knights will check in if there are." Heading for the door, Lily grabbed onto the handle to point to a drawer close to Jin. "There are candles and matches in that drawer, so you can light them if you wish. I will be back later."

Jin watched as Lily left the house, leaving him to turn off the lights. He preferred the darkness anyways, so he remained upon the bed, coiled up on the covers to wait anxiously for Lily's return. The sound of the cat threatening to hiss once more caught Jin's attention on the bed as he looked down at the cat's gleaming eyes he could make out perfectly in the darkness with his own. "I guess it's just the two of us, eh, kitty?"

The cat hissed, his fur standing on end to show his uneasiness with Jin in the room.

"You don't talk much, do you?" Jin said once more, thinking that domestic animals were supposed to, since he could and he was half. Lying on top of his own dampened scales, which were still wet, Jin closed his eyes with sigh as he still felt on edge within the enemy's territory.

Lily's boots dashed through the poodles that were in her way as she kept her hooded coat, tightly wrapped about her body to keep herself warm. "Neda!" She called loudly in hopes of the young girl hearing her. "Neda, where are you!"

Neda still had her forehead buried into her knees, soaking wet in the cold, bitter rainfall. Her fingers numb as well as her legs, she tried to pick her head up off of her knees to look down the roads, which were to her left, right, and in front of her. She could just hear someone calling out to her, though the sound of it was awfully slurred to her ears. "B—Blythe…?" Neda wondered as she forced herself to stand to the best of her ability.

Her clothes clinging tightly to her small body, her dress dragging nearly on the stone ground, Neda pressed her frozen hand upon the buildings to help herself down the left path where she thought she could hear the voice. Breathing heavily, the air released into crystalline vapor, to show how cold it was outside that night in the downpour. Her name being called once more made Neda stopped, turning around in wonder of where it was coming from as it appeared to be coming from everywhere.

"Neda!" Lily called yet again, her hands feeling in front of her for anybody. "Neda, where are you!"

One of the guards on duty caught Lily's words through the storm, making him rush towards her within his heavy, damp armor. "Ma'am, what are you doing out late at this hour? You should be inside. It is too cold out here for you."

"I am sorry, but I am looking for a little girl named Neda. She is nearing her teens and should look like she works on a farm," Lily explained with a slight shiver under her apparel.

"I think I might have seen her enter the market square, but I am not sure where she went to after the storm hit," the guard responded, grabbing onto Lily's hand. "Come, come, we can find her." Running with the woman, he looked down some of the divided roads in hopes of finding Neda, calling her name with Lily as they went.

"By the Goddess, I pray she is not dead somewhere," Lily murmured to herself as she continued to search for the young farm girl.

The knight turned one of the corners down the stone road, which led from the bench he remember seeing her at to hurry towards one of his fellow knights he could just see through the harsh weather. "Durward!" He yelled over the storm. "We can get Durward to help us find her. I could have sworn I saw her rush down this way. Durward!"

Durward turned around in the storm with a young female leaning upon him. Keeping her close to him, he walked forward slowly to the knight, who was running towards him. "What is the matter, Addison?"

The knight addressed as Addison stopped in his tracks to look at the young girl Durward held close by him. "Is that her? Is that Neda, the one you've been looking for?" He asked Lily before glancing at Durward once more. "Where did you find her?"

"I found her wandering aimlessly around here," Durward answered as he helped the exhausted Neda over towards Lily.

Lily reached out for Neda to feel of her face gently with her trembling hands. _I am not sure if it is_, she thought to herself. _I have never been near this child before._ "She is burning up. Yes, it is her. I need to get her home and quickly." Taking Neda into her arms, Lily held her close to her chest with a nod at the men nearby she could sense were still there. "Thank you for your help. I need to get her back to her father. He is worried about her."

"Come on, I will escort you both home," Addison offered, guiding her back down the many roads with his hand on her shoulder.

Lily felt her stomach knot up in worry. She feared what the knight may say if he were to spy Jin in her home after the snake demon had already told her he was forbidden from ever coming behind Eytheria's walls. _Please, Goddess, do not let this go sour…_

Jin remained coiled upon the bed sheets until his ears caught the sound of two voices outside the door. Not recognizing one of them, he panicked at the smell of iron before slipping his serpent half under the covers, knowing the dark would conceal his other awkward appendages. _What the hell are the knights doing here!_

"Thank you for the help, sir," Lily replied on the other side of the door. "I can take it from here. She's very sick so I need to watch over her." Grabbing onto the doorknob, she realized she couldn't open the door by herself with the weight of the cold child weighing her arms down.

"Let me get that for you," Addison insisted as he twisted the doorknob for her to open the wooden door for Lily. "You try to do so much by yourself that would think you are all alone. Why doesn't your husband help you?"

"I don't have a husband," Lily answered confused at what the guard was saying to her, she entering inside of her house quickly with Neda.

Addison tilted his head in bewilderment as well, peeking within the dark house to spy Jin from the abdomen up just barely within the thick darkness. "I thought he was your husband and this was your daughter."

Jin titled his head to the side confused at the term he wasn't too familiar with even if Lily explained it days ago to him. "Me—her 'husband'?" He wondered.

Lily helped Neda over to the bed where she could feel Jin resting under the covers. Placing her hand on his cheek, she caught the demon's attention with a brief smile. "Neda isn't doing too well, so I need you to hold onto her for a moment for me, okay?"

"Of course," Jin whispered in response in the darkness of the house, his arms keeping the cold child close to his broad chest.

Lily headed back over towards the door to wave the knight away from her doorstep. "Please, sir, we don't have time for questions. The girl is sick, and I thank you for your help. But right now, I need to make sure she makes it through the night." Without waiting for a response, Lily closed the door before turning to light the candles in the room. "I am surprised that man didn't kill you when he saw you."

"I guess he didn't recognize me," Jin whispered in the densely lit house. "What is wrong with the young girl?"

"She has a high fever," Lily explained as she got out a bowel to fill with cold water. "Do me a favor and get her out of those clothes. She needs to dry off. She is completely soaked."

"Um, okay," Jin replied, scratching his head in wonder of how to get the clothes she had on off. Moving the covers off of Neda, he tilted his head in wonder at the belt he saw looped about her waistline. His fingers gripping onto the leather strap, he moved it a bit thinking it would slide off only to find it remaining where it was. "Okay, okay, I know how this works," he whispered in confidents to himself. His finger tapping on the metal part of the buckle for a moment, he moved his fingertip against the small metal bar he saw looped through one of the holes in the leather. Managing to get it out of the gap, Jin felt the leather loosen about Neda's waist, allowing him to pull it off of her body.

Placing the belt over on the nightstand, he pulled off her boots next before working on pulling off her dress as well. Jin could tell that the fabric was clearly soaked as the dress and boots continued to drip from the water it had come in contact with. Hearing the floorboards moaning underneath Lily's feet, Jin shifted his attention over to the woman with a cock of his head. He watched as she brought the wicker stool close to the bedside so she could help Neda feel better.

"Should I take off her clothes underneath the one she had on top?" Jin asked with a slight twitch of his elfin ear.

"You mean her undergarments?" Lily wondered, dipping the clean cloth she had into the cold water to place on Neda's heated forehead. "Yes, remove those as well. I am pretty sure every inch of her was drenched from the cold rain. She was out there for awhile."

Jin did as he was asked and removed her underwear for her to put on the floor as he did the others. "Do you think she will be okay? I promised their mother I would watch over them both, not join her in the afterlife."

"She will be just fine," Lily replied, getting to her feet once more. "I will make her some soup so you can feed her. Just keep that cloth on her forehead. Her fever needs to go down. The soup should help." Making her way over towards the kitchen, which was right near the bed the two were in, she knelt down to pull out a pot she could use before searching for the right ingredients. "You know what they say, 'feed a fever, starve a cold'."

Jin was baffled by the saying as he scratched his forehead in thought. "I have never heard that. Where I come from, if someone was ever sick like this, we stayed close to them until they either got well or died."

Putting the broth she had already made in the pot to reheat it, Lily worked on lighting the wood with a match, inquiring Jin's remark. "Where exactly do you come from? I have not known a civilization yet to do something such as that."

"I cannot tell you," Jin responded honestly, trying to keep Neda warm under the covers. "Your kind of race is not exactly all that accepting of me." Feeling the young farm girl trembling still in displeasure, Jin slipped his scaly half gently about her body in hopes of getting it warmer.

"Obviously the mother of the two girls you watch now was accepting of you," the blind woman remarked without fear in her tone, stirring the soup she was tending to.

The fingers of the wind demon rolled through Neda's wet hair, not wishing to think on that night as it had made him a bit fearful of barns. Sighing through his nostrils, he thought about Pearl. "The only reason she was accepting was because of me saving her from the barn fire I accidentally caused…" His voice trailing off, Jin shook his head wishing to be rid of the fresh memory. "Having to watch her die was the hardest thing for me, but I promised her during the moment that I would watch her daughters, and so I will—in the darkness."

"I won't pry then as to what you are," Lily promised, sipping the soup she had upon the wooden spoon. "All I can say to you, Jin, is it is best to let go such hard thoughts upon yourself." Finding the soup to be just perfect in temperature, Lily filled some of it within a bowel, supporting the hot bowel with a tray as she did so. Carefully turning on her heels with the broth swirling slightly thanks to the motion, she headed for the stool she had been upon previously. "It is best to let the past go so that you can care for the girls you promised you would."

Jin watched as Lily situated the tray perfectly upon the bed, raised slightly above the two under the covers of the bed. He witnessed as she turned the silver utensil towards him in bewilderment. "Aren't you going to feed it to her?"

"Why should I when she is not my charge?" Lily asked with a shrug, her glazed eyes wandering about the candlelit home. Her fingers searching over the fabric for Jin's hand, she took it within her own to substitute for her gazing him in the eyes. "Jin, it is your job to make sure these girls make it through till they find a husband. You willingly took on the job of their mother and father, so it is best to start being one now."

Nervously Jin took the end of the spoon to have it play with the soup it was within. "I guess you use this thing to pick up the soup, right?" Jin said aloud to Lily.

Lily furrowed her brow in wonder of what and who he was if he never had seen a spoon before. "Well—uh—yes, of course it is, Jin." Chuckling briefly with her head tilted to the side, she smiled at him. "Great Goddess of the skies, Jin, how do you expect to take care of these kids if you don't know half of the things they do?" Her fingers finding the serpent demon's hand, she helped fixed his fingers about the spoon tightly. "Hold it like this and scoop up the soup like this, and then bring it to her lips to make sure she swallows it."

Watching and listening to her closely, he managed to get the silver spoon filled with the warm broth to Neda's trembling lips to get it inside of her mouth for her to swallow. Jin pulled back the spoon, watching as Neda flinched and shivered some more next to the chest of the demon. "Is she supposed to look like she is in pain? I thought she was supposed to get better with this magical soup."

"There is nothing magical about it," Lily said to Jin as she motioned for him to continue feeding her. "She probably looks as though she is pain because you didn't blow on the soup to cool it down. It is awfully hot."

"You want me to blow in it?" Jin asked with his ears lowered slightly in incomprehension. "Why would you want me to do that?"

Closing her clouded eyes for a moment with a soft smile, Lily reopened them with a shake of her head. "I want you to blow on it to try and lessen the heat for her when you feed it to her. Take this as a lesson to bring back to your _demon_ kind when you return home to them."

Hearing Lily call him a demon made Jin freeze momentarily with a slight hiss within the depths of his throat. "How did you know that? You haven't felt of my scales, and I didn't make a sound to you that would say I was one!"

Chuckling behind her tightly pressed lips, Lily shook her head once more. "You gave away plenty of signs, if not more than enough tonight. When I first met you, my cat wasn't too keen on you and your friend's presents here, and he only gets that way if the person is evil at heart or smells of demon. I trust his intuition," she said with a smile, looking over at the dining chairs where she could feel the feline staring at her through the dark. Lily turned her focus back on Jin. "Also, when you walked upon my floorboards, they moaned more than once every time. When a person walks, the boards indicate the movement twice or so, depending on how many steps I can sense they are taking. Yours and your friend's were just abnormal to me. And now with your inability to go out through Eytheria without causing an uproar and without knowing how to feed or take care of a human girl…it all became pretty clear."

"You do not run or try to cast me out," Jin pointed out in a leery tone. "Why do you allow me in your home where other humans would have me beheaded?"

"Maybe being blind is a curse in that you cannot see the beauty that the Great Phoenix Lady created, but it is a gift in that I can see what is inside the person a lot better than others can." Placing her hand on Jin's cheek, she let her fingertips wander to the edge of his face where his red hair hung, touching the scales that were embedded back there. "And I can tell you mean no harm to anybody. You are just a baby yourself by the feel of the position of your scales. I think you're probably nearing your middle thousands—maybe 1,322 or 1,400. You are a snake demon, aren't you?"

"Yes, but I am a lot different from my fellow serpent demons," Jin explained as he let her hands wander about his face. "Touya and I can control elements unlike the others. I control wind and he controls ice. And I am 1,350 years old, thank you," he chuckled. Jin soon waved his hands slightly. "Wait, how do you know so much about serpent demons?"

"Keep feeding her," Lily instructed softly, getting to her feet to change herself so that she could dry off. "When I was a little girl, my father used to watch demons from afar and write articles on them. He wasn't very popular because of it, but he did what he enjoyed and enjoyed what he did." Stepping into the bathroom, Lily continued her story. "Anyways, he would take me with him sometimes, even if I couldn't see, to tell me everything he observed and written down." Lily tossed off her dampened shirt before working on loosening her belt. "The serpent and wolf demons were his favorites, so I know all I do about them. He surprisingly died of natural causes, and before he passed, he gave me his research thinking maybe one day my child could continue the research he adored."

Jin split his attention between Lily and Neda, twisting his elfin ear towards Lily, changing in the bathroom. "But you don't have a child to take on your father's work. Did your last mate not give you one?"

"No, I am afraid he didn't." Putting on her nightgown once more, Lily tied her hair back as she reappeared from the bathroom. "And I am starting to get too old to have any."

"How old are you?" Jin boldly asked, giving the sick Neda more soup carefully.

Lily couldn't help but laugh briefly at his question. "I am 38 years old. I am hardly at my prime to have children."

Jin fed the last bit of the soup to Neda as he wrapped her a bit tighter within the covers he had her in. "But you can still have children. I can smell your ability to do so."

Lily laughed yet again as she took the finished soup bowl and the tray to put back over to the sink near the oven. "Jin, I wish I could have a baby, I really do, but I highly doubt it will ever happen. Humans stop their ability to produce eggs, not to mention their energy leaves them as well."

"If you want a child, I can help you," Jin offered, bringing Neda closer to his body tenderly. "I am picked often to have babies with others. I can help you if you want."

Washing the bowl in the sink carefully, Lily dried it off before putting away where she had found it in the upper cabinet. Catching Jin's comment, she offered a brief smile at the thought. "You know I would like that, Jin, but I would need help raising a baby. Besides, the baby would be a mixed breed. While I wouldn't mind at all, and it would be a dream come true for my deceased father, the people around here wouldn't take too kindly to that." Lily wiped her hands clean, making her way over towards the bedside to feel of Neda's forehead once she removed the cloth. "She still has a temperature, but it isn't as high as before. She should be fine, but it is best I keep her here until she is well enough to return home."

"I am afraid I will have to leave in the morning," Jin whispered, watching as Lily headed over towards the other bed in her home. "I have a serpent female I promised to offer my powers to her babies, so that means I have to be with her during and after her pregnancy. I wish I could stay with Neda and her sister more, but I am unable at the time."

"I will be sure she gets taken care of and gets the message. Where exactly did you say she came from again?" Lily asked, making her way to her free bed.

"The Cormac Farm," Jin answered. "I am sure she knows the way to her own home when she becomes well." Keeping his serpent half about Neda gently, he buried his cheek upon the pillow he now shared with the young child.

Lily pulled the covers back on her other bed she had open for company ever since her husband left her, sliding within them to make herself comfortable. Tabby, her cat, hopped upon the end of the bed to curl up in peace along with his master he had known for quite a few years, released a content purr within the depths of his throat. "Goodnight, Tabby," Lily whispered to the cat with a soft yawn. "Goodnight, Jin. I hope you sleep well."

"Goodnight, Lily," Jin responded with a powerful yawn, which expressed his sharp teeth. "I hope you sleep well too and thank you for helping me."

The candle that Lily had placed upon the nightstand in between the two beds kept the house lit for awhile until finally blowing out on its own. The storm continued ruthlessly throughout the night. However, the sound of the rain tapping upon the wooden home and stone streets soothed both Jin and Lily as they slept.


	12. Chapter 12

**_Author's Notes_**: Sorry, sorry that I am behind. I have been behind everywhere though following my own schedule. If you want to know what that schedule is, check out the new link in my FF profile called **Jin's Love**. It will keep up with what I am doing and when I plan on completing what.

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The sun of Eytheria rose over the mountainside, giving light to the once darkened world. Sadly, its rays could only reach so far through the relentless, bellowing storm, which continued through to the morning. Raindrops steadily pounding upon the Eytheria Market square, it warned people of the dreary condition outside of their home. The curtains, which covered Lily's windows, moved for her housecat so he could perch there on the windowsill.

Lily rubbed the sleep from her eyes before getting to her feet with a weary yawn. "I guess the storm is still continuing," she said softly to herself, remembering that Neda was still within her house. Making her way over towards the other bed, which comforted the young farm girl, Lily placed her hand upon Neda's forehead to feel of her temperature. "Her fever has gone down. That is a relief."

She opened her nightstand drawer to pull out another, fresh candle to light, to keep the darkness, which the storm brought, out of her house. Striking a match carefully, she felt her way to the candle once more to allow the flame to embrace the white, thick candle's wick. She waved out the flame on the match she held, feeling her way over to the kitchen, so she could make breakfast for the morning.

The feel of a candle's warmth caressing Neda's face slightly roused the girl from her slumber. Her fingers moving slightly next to the pillow, she moaned whilst blinking her eyes open to the foreign home she was within. "What…where am I…?" Neda asked aloud as she pushed herself upwards in bed.

Lily caught Neda's words, gazing over in the direction of the farm child's voice. "It is good to hear you are awake."

Neda looked over at the woman with a slight jerk of her head, shocked to see that a blind woman was responsible for finding her. "Who are you…? What am I doing here?"

Leaving the eggs to cook, she rubbed her hands on her apron she had recently put on. "My name is Lily, and you are here because you were crazy enough to walk out in that storm, which is still occurring outside." Blowing a loose strand of her hair out of her face, she continued. "How do you feel? Are you feeling any better?"

Lily's hand resting on the young girl's shoulder, Neda slightly receded from the woman's touch. "I'm fine just a little tired and hungry. How did you find me?"

"I can hear you are doubtful that I did with me being blind, right?" Lily inquired, retracting her hand from Neda's skin. She turned back to the eggs and soup she was making in the kitchen just a few steps away from the beds. "Honestly, I didn't. It was a young man your mother asked to watch over you and your sister."

Hearing of the men she thought she would never hear from again, Neda inhaled sharply, leaning forward in bed. "He fallowed me here?"

"He did," Lily responded, sipping the soup cautiously.

"What is his name? I was never told who he was," Neda asked, her hands gripping tightly onto the covers about her.

"His name is Jin, and he and his friend have come to me a few times," Lily explained, stirring the soup and messing with the eggs at the same time. "He apologizes for his lack of appearance, but he has his reasons. He is currently taking care of a woman he was arranged with, so Jin may not appear much, but he promised he would try."

Neda merely scoffed at the sound of someone else in love. "It seems that is all it takes to leave me out in the cold lately with my parents gone."

"What do you mean?" Lily asked, flipping the eggs cautiously.

Lily's cat hopped down from the windowsill he was perched upon and bound across the room to the bedcovers covering Neda. Looking at Tabby, Neda tapped her fingers on the covers to get the cat's attention and coax it closer to her arms, so she could pet it. "My oldest sister is already spending most of her time with this knight, who offered to help us…and that is nice, I guess," she said unenthusiastically, scooping up Tabby once he got close enough.

The eggs and soup finished, Lily pulled them from the stove. "You sound so sad for the help, which is blessed to you and your sister from the Great Lady above." Pouring the soup into the bowels she had nearby, she helped the eggs and bread onto the plates she had to spare. Lily balanced the plates perfectly on her palms as she made it over to the dinning table. "It is best not to be ungrateful for what the Great Phoenix has to offer you." Pulling out the chair opposite to the one she would be sitting in, Lily nodded in Neda's direction with her filmed eyes looking beyond the farm girl. "Now come, sit and let us eat."

Neda kissed Tabby before placing the cat off to the side, so she could join Lily at the table. "Thank you," she slightly mumbled in thanks. Breaking her bread on her plate, she dipped some of it in her soup with a soft sigh at Lily's words. "I know with our mom and dad gone, I should be grateful for what we have, but it is so hard to be when your parents were taken from you unfairly."

"Nothing is ever fair when it comes to this world," Lily bluntly put as she ate her eggs slowly. "I don't think it was fair when my father died when I was in my mid-twenties, do you?"

Neda fidgeting lightly with her fork while biting at her lower lip.

Regardless of the uneasiness Lily could feel, she continued. "I don't think it was fair that my husband left me for another woman when I gave him my all, do you? When the Great Phoenix took away my sight, do you think that was fair?" She put down her silverware before reaching for Neda's hand across the table without a problem, as if knowing where it was. "We all have had unfair situations handed to us on this plain; all on different levels, but it is not right to make us demand sympathy from others for the biggest unfairness handed to us." She sighed somberly with a shake of her messy, curly hair. "I am sorry for your loss, and you have my sympathy, but it is best to take those words and work for a better life with the sister you were blessed to keep."

Offering a brief smile at Lily's words, she took back her hand with a nod to herself. "Thanks…I guess you're right. I just wish that Jin person would help us out instead of Thane…it would really be nice."

"Well, as I told you, Jin is busy right now as is his friend, Touya, who were both asked to watch over you two by your mother," Lily reminded Neda as she went back to eating her breakfast. "But don't worry, for I offered to help. As soon as you finish breakfast, I will take you back to the Cormac Farm."

_I cannot believe this—I lose two parents and end up with five!_ Neda grumbled to herself as she went back to eating her breakfast, which Lily was kind enough to make for her.

--

The trees bent to the wind Jin emitted on his way back to the naga nest behind Kalrune Village. His scales rubbing against the muddy ground, he cautiously made it to the deserted graveyard that the Kalrune townspeople had forgotten about. The knights were out in great numbers, and the scent of their armor made him hiss in irritation. "They always come out like this on stormy days," Jin muttered to himself.

Quickly he made it past the defense of the village and towards the great snake demon's nest. The hissing of the other serpents rang in his elfin ears as he made his way towards the Wind Nest. Some of the demons looking at him, he searched through the crowd for Beldon.

Beldon was sleeping next to his mate, Mila, in the comfort of the rain with his large clan. His scales rubbing against one another and Mila's, he opened one eye to spy the powerful serpent heading towards him. Bringing back his upper half, he slowly erected himself there in the rainfall. "Where have you been, Jin? I thought you were watching over my daughter, Silver."

"Sadly I had to take care of something," Jin said quickly. "Is she still back at the abandoned shed?"

"She should be," Mila responded wearily from where she was lazing under the rain. "I don't think she left since you two were in there together."

Jin waved briefly to them as thanks before heading in that direction quickly. He knew he had to be there for Silver after making an attempt to impregnate her. Swiftly he charged through the rain, which pounded upon him, stinging his face all the while, eventually finding himself on the molded steps of the decrepit human building. "Silver?" Jin called from the other side of the door, leaning against the woodwork of the entrance carefully. "Are you there?"

All that answered was the rain and thunder until finally Silver spoke up. "I am here. You may come in." She sounded distant and upset judging from the tone of her mousy voice, which could hardly be heard over the storm.

It worried Jin. Opening the door, he made his way into the dark building to spy Silver on the dusty bed, holding onto herself in a sorrowful embrace. "Silver, what is the matter?" He asked, coming closer to her. His hands resting upon the musty mattress she was upon, he tilted his head slightly to try and peer into her eyes. "Are you okay?"

Silver moved some of her white hair out of her face with a light sniff to show she had been crying while he was away. "I am just scared. I don't feel I am ready for this," she admitted to him, fidgeting lightly with her tail.

"You don't feel you're ready for what?" Jin inquired, holding onto her closest hand within his own. His crimson scales rolling over her icy blue in his attempts to comfort her.

"My dad forced me into being a mother, and I don't think I am ready to be one," Silver clarified, looking at Jin's deep, blue eyes through the darkness of the building they were within. "I thought I could handle it all with you here next to me, but I found myself getting very upset being here all alone…"

Jin felt bad for leaving Silver behind as he did. Opening his arms, he helped the sobbing demon into them with a tender kiss he placed upon her head. "I am sorry, Silver. I didn't mean to leave you alone as I did. Something came up that I had to take care of," Jin explained. His cheek caressing hers, he kept the young demon close to his dampened form. "I promise no matter what, that I will always return to you when you need me. And, don't worry," Jin whispered, stroking her cheek with his thumb. "We will get through this parenting moment together."

Silver held onto the redhead tightly, her hands cupping his mid-back. "I just don't want to be left alone right now…or whenever it is I may get ready to birth."

Jin placed his hand on her shoulder, resting the other on his heart. "Silver, I promise I will try to always be here for you. Things are just crazy for me right now. I promised a dying woman that I would watch over her two kids and they are…" Pausing for a moment, his eyes wandered. "They are not from here—they live around Cormac Farm." His serpent tail moving slightly over her form, he managed a smile to her. "Are you hungry? Do you want something to eat? I am sure you ran out of food since last night."

"That would be nice," Silver expressed somberly, peeking at the serpent demon from the corner of her eyes.

Jin excused himself slowly from the old building, closing the door slowly behind him once his serpent half was out of the way. Furrowing his brow in worry, he looked down at the ground, drenched from the rain, which continued to fall. "I have never come across a demon so scared about motherhood." His elfin ears lowering slightly, he gazed up at the darkened clouds. "Somebody help me…I have too many things placed before me…"

The harsh raindrops continuing down throughout the land, Neda sat by the windowsill of Lily's house, thinking to herself with a light sigh of sorrow. Her finger tapping against her cheek, she waited patiently for Lily to show back up from the bathroom. The door moaning as it opened, Neda gazed over her shoulder to witness the blind woman appear with her brown dress touching her ankles, where were covered by her brown boots she had put on. The dress had a few designs in a darker hue of brown; they trailing up to the belt buckle, the designs branched out about her tight, white long sleeve shirt.

"Are you ready to go home?" Lily asked as she tucked her curly, blond hair behind the bandana she had in her possession.

Neda pushed herself up off of the chair she was sitting upon. "Yes, I am ready." She didn't wish to head back to the Cormac Farm, but Neda slightly worried for her sister she left behind, even if she was with a knight.

Lily made her way to the front door with an umbrella. "We can manage a ride to your farm from inside of the city walls. They always have a carriage in the center for people to use to travel the vast land of Eytheria." She opened the door to allow Neda out first before following after her. Keeping the young girl close by, Lily guided her down the roads of the Eytheria Castle Town.

She was amazed to the say the least, that Lily could actually find her way around without much help. "You are blind, right? How can you see what is before you so clearly?"

"As a child, my father guided me around quite a bit. After a few years of learning how things work behind these cobblestone walls, I managed to make it on my own," Lily explained. "Just because I am blind doesn't mean I cannot feel and hear—the two main senses to use when your sight has failed you."

Neda stayed close to Lily throughout the storm as the two of them made it to the carriage that the blind woman spoke of. A brown horse with white socks and a white stripe running down his face snorted with a shake of his brown mane with an added flick of his tail. Neda watched as he ate out of the man's hand as the two of them hid there under their booth's tarp, ceiling to keep dry from the rain.

Running on ahead, she made it to the large horse to pet the creature tenderly between the eyes and down to his muzzle. "What a beautiful horse, he is," Neda complimented to the man, who was responsible for the creature.

"Why thank you," he responded, running his fingers through his stringy, blond hair. "Ah, I recognize you—you used to come to the market at times with your father, Damon."

Her deceased father's name gracing her ears made Neda's stomach churn. She withdrew her hand with a sorrowful nod. "I used to, yes," she said softly.

Lily was quick to make her way to the man and the horse she could sense was nearby. Her palm touched the cold leather on the beast with her eyes staring off at nothing in particular. "We need to get to Cormac Farm today. Do you think you can help us in doing so in the storm?"

The man scratched the hairs on his chin, humming in thought before looking out at the raging storm. "I don't have a problem with it. If you both get into the carriage I can take you there. We were just finishing our lunch today, so Brownie is ready for the walk." He patted the side of the horse's neck tenderly before hopping up on the front seat.

Nodding, Lily guided Neda towards the carriage's back entrance so she could get the young girl back home. "Thank you," Lily praised as she made her way to the seat on the right. "I have to get this youngling back there before her elder sister worries herself to death."

"Don't worry," he began, slapping the reins against the gelding to make him start into a slow walk, "I can get you both there before the sun sets."

The carriage jerking forward causing Neda to nearly fall to her side though she caught herself just in time. She embraced herself to try and keep warm from the cold air that was present along with the storm.

Lily remained attentive from where she sat. She was listening to everything that came to her. "So, how old are you, Neda?" She asked in attempts to keep a conversation going between them, knowing the ride might be a bit long.

"I am ten," Neda answered simply, looking off to the side. "I will be eleven tomorrow."

"You are so very young," Lily pointed out with a slight shake of her head. "It is hard to believe that someone such as you made it here without problems from the demons, which roam Eytheria freely."

Neda moved slightly with the pull of the carriage she was within. Listening to the rain tap upon the tarp covering them both, she hummed slightly over the horse's hooves clopping against the wooden drawbridge with a shrug. "An elf helped me most of the way, but I do not fear demons anymore…"

"That means you do not fear death."

She looked at Lily swiftly with a raise of her brow. "How did you know that when I didn't say anything about death?"

"A tone carries many things. A lie is not one of them," Lily pointed out as she too listened to the soothing rain, the melody of which always comforted her as a child. "I have to say that I too do not fear them, but for a different reason." Moving a stray piece of her blond tresses, Lily thought of her father she cared dearly for. "My father didn't, and he spent most of his time learning from them; especially the snake demons."

Hearing of the serpent demons made Neda's fist tighten at her side. "Those damn monsters…they don't deserve anything but a blade through their heart."

Neda's words made Lily jerk back slightly at her response. "Why do you damn them? They are normally peaceful creatures unless their nest is bothered or one of their own is slain."

"They were the reason my parents died in the barn fire," the farm girl explained. "I watched them run from the barn when it caught on fire, and two stayed behind to kill them when it was our farm they were trespassing upon…"

Lily listened to Neda with an inward sigh. _She must have second-guessed that night and thought Jin killed her parents when he was just trying to help them. Poor thing, she blames the snake demons for something, which didn't happen._ Clearing her throat, she placed her hand on her chest lightly. "It is best not to hold hate for even a demon. It will fester there over the years, and you will regret the person you will become."

Sighing, Neda shook her head. "I am sure," she sarcastically mumbled, lying down on the seats, which stretched out on her side. "Just wake me when I am home. I am still feeling sick from the night before."

"As you wish," Lily merely responded, keeping her blank gaze fixed on the road that stretched before them.


	13. Chapter 13

Touya never thought he would be so relieved to see the Lunar Lake as he slithered quietly about the area, hunting for Dustin and the others. His heightened senses picking up the trail of the alpha male, Touya hurried over to the thick woodlands, which surrounded the crescent shaped lake near the Mallow's farm. He was cautious with every step he took as he made into the thick woods. Slithering a good few feet before erecting on his serpent half, he gazed about the dark forest with a slight hiss.

"Dustin, Aland, Finlay…are you guys here?" He called silently with his ears taking in every moan of the trees and every chitter of the chipmunks and nightly birds.

The dry leaves snapped underneath Dustin's multi-brown scales as he moved them slowly from where he was resting within the woods. He noticed the scent of the ice demon, serpent from where he was in front of the Paluu Tree. "Touya, you are back!" He exclaimed silently as he watched the serpent child making his way quickly over towards him. His deep, red eyes looked about confused and worried. "Where is Jin?"

"Jin isn't here, but he is fine," Touya assured the restless leader with a slight movement of his hands. "He found another place for us to live. It's an abandoned graveyard behind a human village."

"A human village means humans are nearby!" Dustin quickly pointed out in slight anger. His serpent tail thumped angrily against the hard ground.

"I know this, but Jin found another serpent clan. There are a huge number of them living together in this graveyard," Touya explained, Aland and Finlay coming into view as he did so. "They have this weird belief system, and they took Jin inside of their Wind Clan. There are many more snake demons out there who we can live with if we choose."

"And I choose not to," Dustin said sternly with a slight flick of his serpent tongue.

"But, Dustin—!"

"**_I forbid it!_**" The alpha leader hissed, towering over Touya to scare him into a coil of submission. Pulling back from Touya, he turned his back to him with his fists clutched at his sides. The thought of such a large cluster of serpent demons brought back the thought of his own family he had lost in a horrible onslaught from Eytheria knights. He didn't want to undergo such a thing again.

Aland and Finlay both looked at one another before looking at Touya.

"Sorry, Touya," Finlay said with a shrug of his muscular shoulders. "Apparently Dustin has made up his mind. I guess we are staying here."

"But—he can't…" Touya mostly said to himself. He remained faltered until finding the courage to break through the duo and rush towards Dustin. "Dustin, I need to speak with you about this." Seeing the leader shake his head and threaten to say 'no', Touya quickly darted in front of him with his arms outspread. "Please, just **_listen_** to me!"

Dustin growled at Touya's insistence on the matter. "Touya, I don't want to hear another word about it. Go back to that human, spoiled land and drag Jin back here!"

"No, you have to listen to me!" Touya growled, throwing his hands down to clutch his fists at his sides. "Jin cannot leave there now. He already offered himself to a female, serpent demon he saved. He cannot leave until the eggs are laid and they hatch."

Releasing his anger in a heated sigh, Dustin looked off to the side angrily. _It figures he would do something so stupid even after all I said to him!_ His deep, crimson eyes boiled with inner rage that he dared not release knowing it would destroy what few family he had left. "Fine," he growled silently between the two of them. "We will go to this place you speak of to wait for Jin to finish with his fatherly duties. But I will **_NOT_** remain there."

"Why?" Touya inquired.

Dustin didn't hesitate to demonstrate the anger building inside of him. He grabbed onto Touya's neck and squeezed it harshly, but only for a moment. "You are bold to ask, Touya, but my reasons are personal to me. I dare you to ask once more when we are there, and I will make sure you ask it no more."

Aland and Finlay gazed at one another, never having seen Dustin so angry before, but they knew what drove him mad. They both dared not say a thing about it as they slipped over to Touya to help him up from the brutal grab from Dustin. When their leader turned his back to the three serpent demons, Finlay looked at the ice demon with a shake of his head.

"Do not take it personally, Touya," Finlay began somberly, "Dustin just has a wound on his heart that you touched."

"It would be nice if he would tell me what it was, so I wouldn't touch it again," Touya coughed, grasping his neck gently.

--

The hooves of the horse beat against the ground as it continued to pull Lily and Neda towards the Cormac Farm in the carriage. The storm was still bellowing within that part of Eytheria. It mudded up the road, making the trail they were upon quite slippery. Neda remained asleep upon her side of the carriage while Lily kept her hands cupped in her lap. The carriage soon coming to a halt, Lily looked over at the driver.

"Well, we are here at the farm," the man announced to the two from where he sat upfront.

"Our gratitude is offered to you, sir," Lily said kindly as she felt the air for Neda's body. Her fingers gripping onto her upper arm, she shook Neda gently awake. "Neda, dear, you need to wake up."

Neda's body shaking from Lily's force, she opened her eyes with a slight moan as she wished to sleep a bit longer. "What—what is it? Are we there?" She asked with a yawn.

"Indeed we are." Lily opened her hand to accept Neda's only to have Neda gently push it away.

"I can get off myself," she said with a bratty attitude.

It didn't bother Lily in the slightest. She could understand why the young girl was so upset and using anger to hide herself within. Departing from the carriage by herself, she felt her way to the front of the cart with a few coins in her pocket. "Thank you once again, sir." Walking forward, she made her way to the horse called Brownie. She ran her fingers through the castrated horse's fur. "And thank you as well, Brownie, for making it through such horrible conditions. Have a carrot on me when you get back."

Brownie appeared to nod with a shake of his head up and down in the dreary rain. His hoof pounding at the ground, he felt the reins press against his right, making him turn around to head back to the castle market as he was being instructed to do so.

"Both of you take care of yourselves," the man called over the pouring rain. With a light tap of the reins against the horse's body, he made the creature take off back down the road once more.

Lily reopened her umbrella to shield the rain from touching her skin. "Let's get you inside, Neda," Lily said with a nod only to get no response at all from the young girl. "Neda, Neda, where are you?"

"I am over here," Neda whispered as she stood before the oak tree where her parents had been buried. She stood there soaking in the downpour, gazing at the rock formation Jin had put up for both Damon and Pearl Cormac. She knelt down in the muddy ground, dirtying up her dress she was wearing just to place her hand upon the headstones.

The city woman headed towards the oak tree, where she heard Neda call before hand. Her hand outstretched to feel of the surrounding, foreign area, she felt of the oak tree's bark. "What is it? What are you looking at?" She asked, her blank eyes looking about the space she could not see.

Neda eventually moved over for Lily to take her place. She let the blind woman kneel before the grave markers as well to feel of the rock formation and the letters, which were etched inside of them. The young farm girl caught Lily's smile, the smile painful for her heart to see at the sight plainly before them both.

"What is so funny?" Neda demanded to know.

Lily looked over her shoulder slightly where she heard Neda's words. "I didn't say anything was funny at all, child. I was merely smiling at the rock formation." She hummed in thought. "You said that your parents were murdered by those snake demons, right?"

"Yes."

She shifted her void eyes back at the markers she could feel. "Well, these, Neda, were made by a snake demon," Lily boldly said aloud. "Most people use cement, stone tablets with names and descriptions upon them, but serpent demons burry their dead with stone formations and engraving the person's name into a boulder."

Neda shook her head furiously. "That is a mean thing to say! My parents were killed by those demons, and you still take their side!"

Lily pushed herself out of the mud she was kneeling within, turning on her heels to face Neda. "I am not taking anybody's side, and I am not trying to be cruel to you, Neda. This is the truth. My father documented such behavior from serpent demons before. He called them 'nagas'. This was how they buried the death of a loved one."

"They loved no one!" Neda screamed over the rain, her hair clinging to her face. "They have no reason to bury my parents when they killed them!"

Dropping her umbrella, Lily grabbed onto Neda, who threatened to storm over towards the grave markers to kick them down. "Neda, stop this! Do you possibly think that maybe you misunderstood what happened that night of the fire?" She asked with a brief shake of the young girl. "These demons do not mean you any harm! I am being truthful!"

Neda shook her head with tears joining the rain droplets, which mated her skin.

"They felt bad for what happened and buried your parents," Lily explained with a stern hold onto Neda. "You misunderstand them, and that is no reason to damn them."

Silence formed between the two as the door to the farmhouse opened bringing out Blythe. She had heard the screaming of her sister and was eager to see if it was her. "Neda, Neda, is that you!" She called over the falling rain. Her feet bare, she ran through the mud making grass and dirt stick to them as she hurried to the oak tree where her parents had been laid to rest. "Neda, it is you!"

Neda pulled from Lily with a shake of her head, not wishing to believe Lily's words. Her sister's voice far from her at first, she turned to Blythe to hurry towards her elder sister. Embracing her tightly, she cried within Blythe's chest with a shake of her head. "I am sorry, sister, but I just couldn't take it here anymore…!"

Blythe embraced her sister with her eyes closed tight in relief that her younger sibling was alright. Noticing the blind woman by the stones, she offered a smile to her. "Thank you for returning my sister to me. She is the only part of my family I have left."

Lily turned towards the direction of Blythe's voice with a nod and smile. "It was my pleasure in doing so."

"Please, it is late," Blythe began softly, "you may stay in my parent's room if you wish for the night before returning home."

Neda wanted to say otherwise but had not the strength to say anything. The rain getting to her once more, she excused herself. "I need to go lie down. I am tired from the day," she whispered to her sister. Pulling from her sister's embrace, she headed for the house not too far away, dragging her feet in the mud as she did so—they too heavy with sorrow and pain to be lifted.

Lily smiled at Blythe with a shake of her head. "I am afraid that it wouldn't be a good idea considering the bad ending with your younger sister, dear," Lily announced as she felt around for her mudded umbrella on the ground.

"Neda has been less than happy lately considering our parents death," Blythe sighed, cupping her hands before her whilst watching her sister head for their home. "Do not worry about her right now. I just want to thank you for taking care of my sister."

"I didn't do much, dear," Lily explained honestly, shaking her umbrella clean from the mud it had accumulated. "A young man, who promised your parents to watch over you, found her in Eytheria and guided her to me."

"A young man? Who was he? It couldn't have been Thane, because he has been here when not working in Kalrune Village," Blythe said with a hum.

"His name is not important, but I believe you know him as 'J' from a letter left on your table from what Neda explained to me," Lily said with a soft chuckle. "He is currently deep in Kalrune caring for a woman he is 'married' to, and he apologizes for lack of contact lately."

Blythe shivered from the cold rain pouring down on her with a nod to Lily. "Care to at least come inside for awhile? It is too cold to be standing out here."

"That I wouldn't mind doing." Feeling her way over to Blythe, she took the young girl's hand as she was guided towards the farmhouse's porch. Finding the doorknob, Lily opened it for Blythe before shaking her umbrella free from the rain as she stepped inside behind her. "You will have to forgive me for I do not know this house all too well. Just be sure to direct me away from tables holding valuable items. I would hate to accidentally break them."

The elder Cormac sister guided Lily over to the sofa in the living room not too far away from the front door. "I will just help you to our sofa. If you want to move elsewhere, just tell me, and I will help you do so."

"Thank you—what is your name?" Lily asked as she made it to the cushions upon the sofa.

"My name is Blythe Cormac." Blythe made her way over to the chair on the other side of the coffee table, which rested in the center of the room.

"My name is Lily Madison," Lily said in return. "I apologize for what I said to your sister, but it was true."

"What did you say to her?" Blythe asked.

"I felt the tombstones of your parents, and I noticed they were 'naga' markers—you know, snake demon markers," Lily explained.

Blythe was quiet as she listened to the woman's explanation. She couldn't find that to be possible considering the events that night. "This—this cannot be. How do you know this?"

Lily placed her hand upon her chest, leaning forward slightly. "I know because my father used to study these demons. He told me everything about them and would often read his findings to me, so I too would know what he knew about them before passing on to the Great Phoenix above." She sighed somberly. "I apologize for making her further clouded by her rage. I did not mean to do so. It is just—I have built my beliefs upon those written texts my father gave to me, and I trusted that man with my very life. I know snake demons, or nagas as he called them, would rather eat and kill a farm animal than harm a human being unless one of their own had been murdered by said human hands."

She found this hard to all digest, but Blythe took it all in nonetheless. Cupping her chin, she looked off to the side remembering her parents' actions around the serpent creatures whenever they got around or near the barn. "I knew my mom and dad very well, and I know they would never kill a demon. Their main purpose was to scare them away, because they were no fools. They knew a snake clan would come back for revenge over the death of one of their own."

"Then you have to understand that maybe what happened the night of their death was an accident. Maybe you both didn't see the entire picture as you thought you did," Lily assured. "I can tell you right now, no child snake demon would dare try and kill a human unless they stepped within their nesting grounds, and they build nests far, far away from the stench of humans."

Blythe shrugged. "We don't know if they were child snakes. They sure didn't appear the part."

Lily chuckled within the depths of her throat, waving her finger slightly. "Ah, but you have me. If the snake demons ever show up again, or if you by chance recall their look, I can tell you what you need to know."

"Well," Blythe began, trying to remember what the demons looked like, "one of them had crimson scales and looked to be more than 20 feet long or so. I am not sure. He had wild, red hair and elf like ears."

"What were the placements of the scales on his body?" Lily inquired, leaning her head back slightly.

"Scales on his body? I never saw any scales on his body."

"I actually think I know who you mean," the blind woman said as she fixed herself upon the sofa cushions. The sofa creaked and groaned under her movements. "I have heard of that one. He sneaks into Eytheria's Castle Market sometime—a male, correct?"

"I think so."

"Did he have a shaft?"

Blythe paused, wondering what she meant by that term. "A what?"

"A shaft—a place where his penis hides."

Blythe blushed at the term as she shook her head crazily. "Uh—I don't know…! I never get that close to one, but he looked muscular to me."

"Then I can tell you right now that that one you saw was a baby," Lily confirmed, knowing it was Jin they were speaking of. "He is only in his early thousands and an adult naga is at least four-thousand years old. I have seen him around my house at night, and I often feed him."

"You feed a demon!" Blythe exclaimed, covering her mouth in shock.

Lily chuckled, shaking her head slightly at the young teen's reaction. "It's not as horrible as you may think. If you feed snake demons, they are more than likely to stay away from farm animals or house pets, and I love my house cat a lot." She moved a bit of her wavy hair out of her face. "If you wanted, you could throw raw meat out for them, and they will eat it, leaving your precious horses, chickens, and cows alone."

"Thane doesn't take too kindly to demons," Blythe explained. "He is a knight who has come over here every morning to help with our barn and taking care of the house."

"How old is he?" Lily asked.

"He is only twenty. He works the night shift at Kalrune Village as I said earlier." Eagerness building within her, Blythe shifted a bit in the chair she was in to try and relax once more.

"Hmmm," Lily hummed, cupping her mouth in thought. "That is a lot of work for one so young. He will not be able to put up with it all if he continues." She leaned back upon the sofa's cushions once more with a soft smile to the young girl she could not see. "How about this—I will stay here and help with things as well when I am able. I have to say with already meeting 'J', I feel like I know you both already as well as your background story. I can cook and clean, which are probably both things Thane cannot do well being a young man."

Blythe inhaled sharply in surprise, placing her hands together before her almost as if she were praying. "Oh my, way thank you! Thank you very much! But, what about your home back in Eytheria Castle? It is quite a walk to and from both places, and you don't know the way being blind."

"Well, that does present a problem," Lily said in return with a shake of her head. "I know I can get here by carriage as I did today, but I am not sure about getting back."

Thinking on the situation too, an idea eventually struck Blythe. "How about you take one of our horses? We have a good many to choose from that didn't die in the barn fire, and they have all been trained to go from here to Eytheria. You wouldn't have to worry about a thing being on one of them."

She smiled at the offer given to her. "There is an inward stable in the castle market," Lily said with a few nods. "That sounds like a good idea to me. I accept the offer and promise to take special care of any horse you give me."

"Wonderful!" Blythe exclaimed with a bow from where she was sitting. "Simply wonderful!"

Lily pushed herself up off of the sofa. "Now, seeing as it is almost dinner time, can you direct me to the kitchen? I will need your help finding my way around there too."

Shooting up from the chair she was upon, Blythe grabbed tenderly onto Lily's wrist to help her over towards the kitchen area not too far away. "It is this way. I can stay with you until you have everything memorized, Miss. Lily."

"That is very kind of you, Blythe," Lily chuckled as she made it into the kitchen area.

Neda watched and listened to everything from the top step. She didn't agree to anything that was happening, but she knew being so young, she couldn't have a say in the matter. Leaning against the top banister, she sighed sadly to herself before standing to her feet and heading to her bedroom to be alone.


	14. Chapter 14

_**Author's Notes**_: I know I said I would put this on hold until further notice, but I am completing a chapter. All it takes is one review sometimes to make me look back at it. lol Enjoy

Sorry for my lack of writing lately. I've been mentally abused at work to the point I just come home, and I am too tired to work on anything. I am trying to get better.

--

The rain continued relentlessly throughout the coming hours. The Kalrune Village was armed heavily with soldiers of Eytheria. They knew that when it rained this heavily serpent demons would come out in great numbers as they found the rain to be as soothing and welcoming as the warm sun's rays on a nice summer day whenever they were together. Two of the knights guarding Kalrune stood side by side just in the center of the village. One of the guards groaned in disgust at the oncoming rain.

"I hate it when t he weather is like this." The guard had narrow, blue eyes and some visible scars on his face, which revealed his age to possibly be around his mid to late 40s. "I don't see why we have to waste our time here when the attacks on villagers are rare."

"You know as well as I do that the serpent demons come out in great groups to destroy anybody who gets in the way of their feeding," the other guard felt need to remind the other on patrol with him. "I cannot count how many domestic animal carcasses alone I find at farms and out in the wild after days like this."

The elder guard looked off to the side, sighing through his nostrils in an irritated fashion. "Come on then," he grumbled as he walked onwards down the mudding road. "I guess we might as well do what we are paid to do."

The serpent demons behind the abandoned graveyard of Kalrune were enjoying the weather as they all remained against one another, allowing the rain to tap upon their shimmering scaly bodies. Most were intertwined with one another to share in the rainy weather and remain warm while others were comfortably resting in their nests belonging to their clan's side. The only pair that didn't join the large gathering of serpent demons were the wind serpent Jin and the soon to be expecting Silver.

Jin had coiled himself around the sleeping Silver to let the worried female know he was still there beside her. He had his chin resting against her neck with his arm draped over her naked form. When he felt Silver stir slightly against him, Jin opened his eyes slowly to gaze down at the slumbering woman. His crimson scales rubbed against her soft blue. Silver appeared to be moaning in her sleep a bit, her face slightly contorted in discomfort. Jin raised his chin slightly off of her neck, moving his ears forward at the sounds she made.

"Silver," he whispered to her, grabbing onto her shoulder closest to his hand to shake her. "Silver, what is the matter?"

Silver moaned once more as she batted her eyes open to find the slight pain a reality. She moved her hand down slowly to her stomach to rub it a bit. "My stomach is hurting." When she witnessed Jin's eyes widen and gaze down at where she had her hand placed, she shook her head. "Not by much. I am fine, really. I think I am just hungry."

Jin unraveled his serpent half from Silver to part from her, heading towards the door of the shack. "I will be right back. Let me get you something to settle your stomach."

"Be careful," Silver advised eagerly. "With the weather like this, the iron men are out there in packs…"

He could hear the worry in her tone. His hand was upon the rickety doorknob of the old shack only to have his fingers slide off of the wooden knob as he turned back around to make his way over to Silver. Bending down, he kissed the worried serpent demon upon the cheek before gracing her with a smile. "I promise I will. Do not worry about me."

Silver found comfort in his kiss as she smiled wearily back at the wind serpent. The door closed to indicate she was alone once more, it didn't bother her as much as before as she rested her head back down on the aged, filth covered pillow to continue to rest until Jin was to return.

Jin made his way quickly through the forest in hopes of finding something quickly for Silver to eat. His swift movements alerted some of the slumbering serpents though they figured it wasn't anything to be distressed over as he was silent while passing through. One of the alphas ruling along the higher nests resting along the mountainside about the graveyard was alerted by his movements.

The alpha was concealed by the darkness, making it difficult to make out his features except for his deep green eyes, which pierced through the night. He turned to look over at one of those residing in his nest to give a simple nod to the male serpent demon before quickly crawling down the mountainside.

When the smell of iron was strong thanks to the many knights patrolling Kalrune, Jin kept himself low to the ground as he tried to make his way through the human village to the nearest chicken farm usually kept in such small towns. He was aware that during such weather most animals would be difficult to find, so he only had the human's domesticated animals to sate Silver's hunger.

He was quiet as he used the dusk to hide while making his way through the patrol of guards littering the village. Inhaling through his nostrils, Jin picked up the smell of the chickens causing him to hurry over towards the chicken coop he could see in the backyard of one of the houses within the Kalrune Village. He was halfway there only to stop quickly upon spying two Eytheria Knights stationed not too far away from the building. He stayed against the building to the left of him, allowing the shadows caused by the two houses about him to conceal him better in the darkness of the night. _Come on_, he pleading to himself. _Move away from there!_

Thane happened to be one of the guards there that night as he looked about the starry sky only to shift his attention about the village, which was so eerily quiet except for the rain and the cries of the demons outside of the boundaries of the town. He remained calm though frowned with a shake of his head at the horribly noises filling his ears. "This is one of the reasons I detest night patrols."

With the rain tapping upon his armor, the knight next to Thane could almost barely hear his companion's words. "Don't tell me you're scared. That isn't a good trait belonging to an Eytherian Knight." The man next to Thane had blond hair as well, though it was slightly longer. The helmet piece the man wore covered most of his tresses though the front strands were damp against the knight's armor gear. He was probably a little bit older than Thane was, one could only assume by how young he appeared to all the other elder knights.

The words given to him caused Thane to look over at his partner for the nightly patrol. "I am just worried, Kale," Thane admitted. "I have been taking care of those Cormac girls seeing as they are now orphans, and they have a rather nasty serpent demon problem it would seem."

Kale chortled as he gazed at Thane from out of the corner of his eye. "Ah, so that is where you have been hiding afterwards, eh?" His armored hand closest to Thane rested upon the young man's shoulder. "So you may have actually found somebody, hu?"

Thane knew Kale was just joking around with him. It was only in his friend's nature to be a jokester at times to help the time pass by quicker. "That is not why I go there!" Thane insisted though he couldn't deny the fact he was blushing at the thought of Blythe. "Anyways, the Cormac Farm is in distress lately, because of a barn fire they had. They lost a good majority of their livestock as well as their parents." The admitting of that caused the atmosphere to become gloomier than before. "I left them for the night with this woman from the Eytheria Market Place named Lily who offered to help them when she could, but I still cannot help but grieve for them and worry." He turned to Kale who was listening with a serious frown upon his face. "I am trying to get the farm back to normal with what connections I have, but the same thing could happen again if those serpent demons keep coming back for more of their livestock."

Jin listened in on the two knights' conversation, making his entire body falter at being reminded of the charges he was left with by the dying Pearl. Remembering that night of Pearl dying in his arms as she pleaded with him to watch over and protect her daughters, he closed his eyes whilst shaking his head at himself sadly.

"Why don't you just ask the Captain of the Guard if you can relocate to the Cormac Farm?" Kale asked seriously. "I am sure he would be willing to reassign you."

Thane sighed as he cupped his forehead in his hand. "I don't know if he would or not. He gives those areas to the patrol that watches over the main transportation roads on horseback, and that is for those more experienced than I."

"I am sure things will get better, Thane," Kale assured with a warming smile. "Come on; let's continue our rounds for tonight. Standing in one spot obviously does little good."

The young Thane agreed as he followed behind Kale, leaving the house Jin was eyeing from afar.

Jin was still focused on what he had promised Pearl once he watched the two knights leave. "Pearl," he whispered to himself. "I am sorry, but I have to do this first….please forgive me." The redhead made his way towards the chickens in the pen he saw up ahead.

The chickens within the pen saw the demon soon towering upon his serpent half with a subtle hiss as he tore open the lock to make his way inside where the startled birds were being held. The door creaked open as Jin moved it. Once inside of the chicken pen, he used his sharp, venomous nails to kill some of the white feathered birds before moving into the coop to sniff out the chicken eggs he knew Silver would like as well. Squeezing his way through the door, he hissed and snapped at the domesticated creatures to make them leave their nests, so he could have the eggs they were protecting.

The chickens were creating quite a riot, which caught the attention of Thane and Kale as they weren't too far from their previous post. Thane looked over his shoulder with Kale as well, both bewildered by what was causing that noise. "What is going on?" Kale wondered only to have Thane suddenly take off towards the chicken coop they were at not too long ago. "Thane!"

Thane ignored Kale calling his name as he hurried back to where they were. _Chickens don't get that upset unless some beast is after them_, he thought to himself as he clutched his sword, which he pulled from the sheath. Thane hurried quickly to the pens to find the birds running around like mad, their feathers falling off as they flapped furiously to get out of harm's way. The young knight stopped just outside of the chicken coop to see the last bit of the serpent's tail hanging out from the birds' house.

The knight was a little hesitant to attack by himself, but he was furious at the serpent demons with all they had caused to the Cormac sisters. Thinking of Blythe, he kept his sword close to him as he hurried into the pens with a battle yell at the unsuspecting demon. Without giving Jin time to react, Thane sliced his blade across the demon's serpent tail.

With the knight's blade cutting through his tough skin a bit, Jin hissed in pain as he pulled himself out of the bird house to hiss and claw at Thane only to stop for a moment when he recognized who it was. _It's that knight…!_ He exclaimed mentally to himself. Jin knew he wasn't allowed to fight Thane at that moment, but he couldn't die there either at the cost of his blade. He dodged the sword that Thane swung at him, wrapping his tail about the knight's wrists to make him drop his weapon upon Jin squeezing the human's wrists tightly.

"GAH!" Thane cried in pain as he was forced to drop the sword.

Jin listened to the blade splash within the mud before unbinding Thane's wrists to use his tail to pick up the weapon by the hilt. He examined it before bothering to stick it tightly into the earth where nobody could pull it out.

The thunder bellowed as the lightening struck, lighting up the dark features of the serpent demon before the Eytherian Knight. "It is you…! You're that demon that keeps causing problems at the Cormac Farm!"

He listened carefully to the human's words, raising his brow ever so slightly though keeping his ground. "Kèlgak, dèn mèhn, gèk!" Jin said in demonic not wishing to speak in English. He knew it was always better to have the humans believe that most demons were mindless beasts who couldn't speak in their tongue.

"Thane!" Kale yelled as he made his way over to the warrior, finding him cornered by the serpent demon. The knight stopped in his tracks, knowing if he got too close he might wind up in the same situation. He reached over his back to grab his bow as well as an arrow to aim at the redheaded demon. Releasing the arrow, Kale let it fly through the air and land on its mark in Jin's side before reaching for another.

The arrow piercing through Jin's tough skin made the demon hiss in pain though he was quick to pull it out causing his demonic blood to pour forth from the wound. It wasn't before long that Kale released another arrow at Jin causing it to pierce his arm this time. He felt forwards, breathing heavily against the mud, which now caressed part of his face.

"Thane!" Kale called once more as he hurried over towards him once Kale saw he brought the demon down. He made his way to his friend's side. "Thane, are you alright!"

Before Thane could hope to answer, roots seem to steadily creep up both the knights' legs to grab onto them tightly and keep them anchored where they stood. "What the hell!" Thane exclaimed as he tried to get out of the root entrapment.

With the humans entrapped, the serpent demon, who followed behind Jin, slithered quickly towards him. "Get up!" The voice demanded in demonic to the slightly unconscious Jin. "You have to get up!"

Jin could hear the voice though his elfin ears could only retrieve it as distorted as he tried to come too. His weary blue eyes made there way upon the towering serpent demon who had come to his rescue. He couldn't make out anything at first until the lightening flashed behind the unfamiliar demon to see, long red hair upon the beast. "Who…are you…?"

"My name is Kurama. I am the alpha of the earth nest," the demon answered as he helped Jin up. "I have to get you back to the group!"

With the injuries he had sustained, Jin was unable to stay awake much longer causing him to pass out in Kurama's arms.

Silver remained within the shack, worried for Jin as the hours seemed to pass. Her stomach was still paining her from hunger, but she ignored it after awhile as she got up to pace back and forth in the decrepit building. "Where is he?" She wondered aloud to herself. "He should be back by now…!"

The door soon flew open startling the young Silver as Kurama pulled the unconscious Jin in with him. Silver couldn't help but panic as she saw and smelt the blood dripping from her wounded mate. "Jin!" She screamed as she hurried over to him and Kurama. "What happened to him!"

"He was attacked by the men in iron," Kurama announced with a grunt, helping Jin to the bed, so he could start working on the wind serpent's wounds. He unwrapped his tail from a woven basket he brought with him through the downpour, plopping it down near the door. "He was trying to steal from Kalrune Village, and Jin was caught." Right away Kurama tried to use his energy to heal the open wound on Jin's side. "I brought back some of the chickens and eggs he wanted to steal for you. It is in that basket. Just let me worry about him now."

Silver knew that she should eat, but the stress and worry now placed on her body and mind made it difficult to even consider. She quickly made her way over to Jin's bedside. "I can't eat now…I want to know he's okay." Silver could feel the tears now streaming down her face, blaming herself for Jin's injuries. _He could have died because of me_, Silver thought to herself. _He could die…_

Kurama could hear Silver's sadness worsening as he looked up at her quickly from the arrow he was cautiously removing from Jin's arm. "He is going to be alright, Silver," the earth serpent assured her. "They didn't pierce anything that could kill him."

The fair haired demon woman merely nodded as she moved the dampened strands of Jin's hair away from his face.

--

It would be an hour before Jin would be fully bandaged and on his way to recovery. He remained out in slumber regardless, tossing and turning from the nightmarish images starting to steadily flow through his mind. The fire of man seemed to burn through the nests belonging to the serpent clans behind Kalrune Village. The screaming of those burning alive and dying from battle wounds started to overwhelm him causing beads of sweat to creep down his face. The most recognized scream was Silver's. He could see her clearly in his mind as she was backing up in the flames with fear written on her face, the flames lighting her features clearly in the dark.

"Jin…!" She whimpered as she pulled herself backwards in fear. "Jin-**JIN**!" When she screamed once more, the flames in his mind seemed to engulf her to the point it forced Jin quickly awake with a hurried inhale.

Silver witnessed as Jin finally woke making her relieved though fearful of the agonizing expression he had on a moment ago. "Jin, are you okay!" She asked, holding onto his left arm gently. "My goodness, I was so scared for you!" The thought of him dying on her once more caused Silver to cup her hands about her mouth as she wanted to hide her quivering lips.

"I'm okay; I'm okay," he promised the saddened Silver as he gripped tenderly onto her wrists. Jin was still in slight pain when he moved, but he kept the feelings of it at bay. He left his fingers about Silver's trembling wrists to pull her hands from about her mouth. "Do not worry about me."

"You nearly died because of me." Silver couldn't release the guilt she still placed on herself over the situation Jin was within. "I am so sorry…"

Jin cupped the side of Silver's tear, dampened cheek to help guide her into the soothing kiss he planted upon her quivering lips. "It is **my** job to make sure you are okay," he said upon parting from the kiss. Jin slid his fingers through her long, stringy white hair cascading down her naked body. "Speaking of which, how are you feeling?"

Silver reached up to hold onto Jin's hand, bowing her head slightly at his words to her. "I haven't eaten yet. I was too scared to consider it."

The wind serpent's soft smile turned into a worried frown. He wasn't sure how long he had been out to cause Silver's worry. Jin sighed, gazing off to the side to think back on what happened that night. "Oh, I failed, and I didn't get you anything to eat."

"No, no," said Silver quickly with a shake of her petite hands. "Kurama brought some of the things in that you managed to kill last night." Her scales rubbed against the dusty floorboards as she made her way over to the basket the earth nest alpha left behind on her behalf. As she worked on bringing the basket over, Jin seemed to be thinking about the name presented to him.

"Kurama, who is he exactly?" Jin inquired softly between the two of them.

Silver situated the basket of chicken eggs and blooded chicken carcasses over to the bed she shared with Jin. "He is the leader of the earth nest. He is good with healing." Pulling back the basket's cover, she reached for one of the chicken eggs, which seemed to be calling out to her.

"I know that, but why does he have special powers?" Jin was curious as he thought he and Touya were the only special serpent demons with any control over the elements. "I thought it was impossible to be granted such a gift at birth."

The pregnant serpent demon had to wait a moment before responding as she had just swallowed one of the eggs whole. "What do you mean by that?" Silver managed to push the egg all the way through her throat and down to her stomach. "You and your friend have special powers, don't you?" Silver witnessed Jin nod. "Didn't everybody as well from where you came from?"

Jin shook his dampened hair, which still slightly clung to his face. "No, only a selective few could have control over such things." Recalling Touya, Jin began to wonder exactly where his friend was. He was beginning to worry even if it would probably take him awhile to return with whatever news Touya was to give Jin. Silver could tell something was on his mind as she continued to eat what was salvaged during Jin's run.

"Is something the matter, Jin?" Silver asked, her hand touching the side of his cheek to bring his attention back to her.

He wrapped his fingers about her wrist once more to pull her hand from his scaly cheek. Jin brought her hand over to his lips to kiss her upon the palm of her hand. "I am just thinking. I promise I am alright." He kept a tender hold onto her wrist, bringing her over to his body, so he could embrace Silver and kiss her suggestively. The crimson scales and soft pink underbelly began to slide their way over Silver's to embrace her with his serpent body.

Silver reached up to cup the side of Jin's face, closing her eyes to enjoy the deep kiss he was given to her. The taste of his warm breath relaxed her, Silver sliding her tongue over Jin's with a pleasure filled hiss. She felt Jin lowering her down to the musty bed they shared. With Jin above her and her lying contently on her back, Silver slid her hands gently up his bare back to bring the wind serpent closer to her. "Take me as you did," Silver practically begged within Jin's elfin ear. "I want to know you are here with me…"

His ears catching her words, he set his sights upon her with a toothy smile to her. "I will do whatever you want me to, Silver." His forked tongue came forth to slide tenderly against the pallid skin of the female demon to taste of her fair skin. With the feel of her moving against him a bit harder, Jin couldn't help but winch due to the injuries he had sustained during his run into Kalrune. Hearing him wheeze in such a painful way made Silver stop as she saw the agony evident there in his expression.

"I am sorry…!" She exclaimed breathlessly. "I am so sorry! I forgot about your injuries…!"

Jin shook his head at her worry even though the sweat now creeping forth was him trying to suffer through the pains. "N-no, I can do this, love." He rested his sweaty forehead against Silver's to try and regain himself as he looked her lovingly. "Shhh now," he whispered, kissing her lower lip tenderly. "Just kiss me."

Silver was hesitant but did so regardless, cupping the back of his head.

The rain continued to tap furiously against the shack they were within. Regardless, it soothed them both as they enjoyed one another's company that night. The howling of the wild wolves and the demonic echoed throughout the full mooned night adding more music to the rainy evening. It bothered the serpent clan very little though putting the humans who heard their cries in a state of worry.

Blythe was one of the many who heard the howls of the demonic wolves, making her shiver there within the farm house, gazing out beyond the dark window dripping from the rain, which mated with the glass. Lily could feel the tension within Blythe's worried inhale making her turn her head slightly to the frightened young girl.

"They are just enjoying the moonlight," Lily explained calmly with a tender smile upon her face. She continued to stir the soup she had made for the two girls listening herself to the musical cries of the demon wolves Lily had come to find majestic in sound.

"They are coming to feed…," Blythe said with terror as she backed up upon the creaky boards beneath her, shaking her head at Lily.

Lily twisted her nose at the young farm girl. "No, they are not. They are just howling at the moon they find to be energizing when it is full." She pulled the wooden spoon from the soup pot to taste of what she had made so far to find it had finally come to perfection. "Well, the soup is ready." Cautiously Lily pulled the pot from the stove before feeling her way about the kitchen to bring down some of the plates, handcrafted from merchants at the market town. "I am sure if the people of Eytheria didn't misunderstand the beasts surrounding our lands, there would be fewer attacks on both sides."

"How do you know this?" Blythe asked confused. She had the basket of bread still in her hands. Upon realizing this, she placed it down in the center of the table finally before bothering to brush her palms against her dress.

Lily chortled, "My father also studied wolf demons. I guess I forgot to mention that one." Gracefully, Lily sauntered over to the center table, stopping inches from it as if she saw it to place the bowls of soup she held in her hands down at certain locations on the table. Her glazy sight was fixed straight ahead at the opposite wall. "Please fix them for me." Lily knew she probably placed the bowls in the wrong locations, not familiar with their table setting yet.

Blythe took the bowls and put them where there was an empty seat. "Okay, there, everything is ready. All we need now is…" She couldn't help but pause, looking up the wooden staircase, thinking of Neda, her sister. When Lily said nothing and her face void of any emotion, Blythe sighed. "Do you want me to go get her?"

Lily nodded quickly. "It would be best as she doesn't have a liking to me right now."

The elder Cormac sister sucked in her lower lip, biting it out of nervousness as she headed up the staircase. Blythe was aware that Neda was upset and not wishing an audience with anybody at the moment, but she couldn't allow Neda's attitude to continue or it could cause her to lose her only family member. Her fingers gripped onto the dress she wore, raising it out of the way of her boots as she made it to the upper level of the farm house."Neda?" She called as Blythe made her way to their bedroom, rapping her knuckles upon the woodwork to get her sister's attention. "Neda, it is time to eat."

Nobody answered from the other side causing Blythe to worry.

"Neda, are you there?"

"Yes, and I am not hungry!" Neda snapped quickly from the other side of the door.

Blythe sighed almost in defeat at her sibling's reaction. "Neda…Neda, you have to eat."

"Just leave me alone and let me sleep!" Neda was buried within her bed's covers, tears streaming down her face as she just wanted to lie there and be hidden from the rest of the world. She was tired from everything that had been going on. It made her feel as if the world were against her.

Blythe had gotten to the point where she knew arguing with her sister was always a bad idea considering how fragile Neda had become lately. Lowering her hand and her head slightly, Blythe made her way back to the staircase to slowly descend it. Lily was already at the foot of the stairs, trying to hear what was going on.

"Well, what did she say?" Lily asked as her ears couldn't pick up the muffled words spared by the depressed Neda.

She folded her hands before her as the elder Cormac made it to the last step, bypassing Lily. "She is not coming. It is just the two of us for tonight."

Lily allowed Blythe past her though continuing to gaze upwards with a worried expression written upon her face. _Jin, where are you? I really could use your help…_

--

When the rain had finally stopped in the middle of the night, Jin found himself waking up from the slumber he was within, curled up next to Silver. Seeing that Silver was sleeping peacefully, he smiled down upon her, running his fingers through her white strands. He placed a tender kiss upon her cheek before uncoiling himself from her, covering Silver's body with the sheets in place of his own form. "I will be right back, love," Jin whispered within her ear.

Leaving the small house, Jin made his way back up to the Cormac house. He had felt guilty ever since overhearing the humans speaking of the farm and the two girls left within it to survive on their own. Jin had promised Pearl he would watch over them, and now he felt terribly guilty for not doing so to begin with.

Lily had fallen asleep within the rocking chair that night after dinner was over. Her right hand rested over her lap while the other hung loosely beside the chair. She was aware the girls were safe and sound asleep upstairs, so she wasn't worried over them for the coming hours.

Remaining close to the ground, Jin made his way to the window facing to the north, peeking inside to see clearly that Lily was there within the Cormac house. He gazed back and forth quickly to make sure the girls weren't up before tapping on the glass of the window to get Lily to let him in.

The tapping sound was soft at first, causing Lily to sleep right through it until Jin got a bit louder the second time. "Mmm…hmmm…?" She mumbled, rubbing her glazed over eyes. "Who is there?" Lily got to her bare feet with her hand outstretched before her so she could make her way safely to the window. "Who is there?" Lily asked once more in a demanding tone.

"Lily, it is me," Jin said in a hushed tone though loud enough to make it through the window.

"Jin!" She exclaimed softly, pulling the window open to speak better to the serpent demon. "Where have you been! I could really use your help!"

Jin grabbed onto the windowsill to pull his heft, scaly body over the wooden pane and into the humans' house. "I am sorry, but I got injured trying to take care of the female serpent I have been with lately. The guards caught me at Kalrune, and they pierced me with their weapons. I was out for awhile. I am sorry."

Lily continued to gaze blankly ahead, worried, however, for the wind serpent's condition. "Are you okay?" She asked, reaching her hands out once more to touch of his face before scrolling them down to his chest and then his sides to find one of them bandaged. "You were bandaged?"

"Yes, an earth serpent did that for me," Jin said with a slight wheeze upon Lily touching his wounds, which had not completely recovered. Once he had enough of the pain, he gently grabbed onto Lily's wrists to stop her from touching them anymore. "So what is wrong? What is going on here?"

Shaking her head in disappointment, Lily sighed somberly. "It is Neda. She won't eat and all she wants to do is sleep. She really needs somebody to feed her, or she may die."

Jin's serpent body slithered about upon the floor slowly as he looked upwards at the dark staircase. "I will take care of her."

Confused, Lily grabbed onto Jin's upper arm to prevent him from going any further up the stairs. "You-what? You cannot be seen by her, Jin. She still thinks you are the one who killed her parents."

"I have taken care of her before when she was asleep," Jin explained as he pried away from Lily. "She didn't recognize me as she was dreaming." He then stretched out his finger to lengthen the nail upon it. "And if she tries to wake, I can put her back to sleep myself with my toxins. Bring me the dinner you made for her. I will get her to eat it."

"I will." Lily brought her hands together before her breasts. "Just, please, be careful…"

His serpent body swayed back and forth as he made his way up the stairs to the girls' bedroom. Cautiously he opened the door, peeking inside to find the two fast asleep in their beds. Jin made his way quietly over to Neda's bedside to find her facing towards the wall with her hands curled up near her face. Rising up on his serpent half, he leaned over the human girl's body to see she looked much skinner than before. Cautiously, he slid his hands under Neda's form to bring her close to his chest. "Come here, you," Jin whispered, helping her into his arms.

Neda moaned as her body was moved. She was too tired to open her eyes due to not eating well that night or the ones before for that matter.

Lily came up a little while later with the meal she had previously reheated. "Jin, I have come with her dinner." She balanced the bowl of soup on the tray along with a slice of bread. Staying near the doorway of the room, Lily was hesitant to move. "Will you guide me? I do not know this room."

Jin slid his python length body over towards where Lily was standing, not moving from where he was positioned besides Neda's bed. He lifted his tail up to her wrist to embrace it gently. "Follow me," he beckoned from across the room.

She followed Jin's pull upon her arm, stopping in front of the serpent demon. "Do you know how to feed her now?" Lily inquired while leaning down a bit so Jin could get the soup.

"Yes, I can try to," said Jin as he accepted the soup, keeping Neda against his right arm to rest her head upon. Taking the silver spoon into his right hand, he dipped it into the soup to bring close to his own lips to blow upon it. Realizing it would be difficult to open her mouth and have her drink it down, Jin rubbed is finger against her lips in attempts to have her open her mouth. Neda moaned irritably, turning her face to the side slowly not wanting to be bothered. "Shhh, shhh," Jin whispered against her hair. "You need to eat, Neda." He paused for a moment wondering what else to say to make her eat. His ears shot up a bit at remembering what she called him last time. "Neda, your father would really like it if you'd eat."

Hearing that word, Neda only opened her eyes slightly before closing them once more. "Daddy…?"

"Yes, now come and eat for me." Jin guided the spoon to Neda's lips knowing she was half awake. With the feel of the silver utensil against her mouth, Jin watched as she finally took the food into her mouth wearily. "There you go. Good girl."

"She calls you 'daddy'?" Lily asked between the two of them.

"Only when she's half awake or dreaming," Jin explained continuing to spoon feed the tired Neda. "She just recognizes I am a male is all, and I am sure her father is the first person to come to mind." With the next spoon full of soup, Jin noticed that Neda didn't want to take it in entirely causing some of it to pour out the corner of her mouth. "Oh, oh," the redhead whispered to himself as he caught the warm soup on the spoon to clean up her face.

Lily heard Jin causing her to worry a bit. What happened?"

"I just accidentally missed her mouth there. I got some of it up."

"Use my apron," Lily insisted, tapping her free hand upon the white fabric hanging before her front.

Jin took the fabric close to him, wiping Neda's mouth a bit. "Thank you, Lily." He put the spoon back into the empty bowl, placing it back onto the tray Lily still held. "She is finished. Do you want me to help her eat the bread?"

"She should be fine now." Lily reached down to grab onto the bedcovers to bring them down a bit more past Neda's stomach. "You need to help her digest. I don't know how long she's gone without eating well. If she eats too much, she may throw up."

Jin shrugged with confusion. "What do you want me to do?"

"Rub her stomach, and make sure she doesn't throw up," Lily advised as she turned carefully back around to make her way to the kitchen.

With Lily leaving the room, Jin began to do as he was asked. The palm of his hand met with Neda's stomach area to start rubbing it tenderly yet firmly. "You need to keep that down." Jin rested his chin upon the wild, stringy hair of Neda. "You need to feel better. I promised your mother I would make sure you were both okay. Don't make me let her down…"


	15. Chapter 15

Lily had managed to gradually maker her way down the staircase by herself with the tray in her hands. She was relieved but still worried over Neda's condition as she placed the plate down near the sink she could feel with her hands. Placing the dishes there for the time being, she wiped her hands on her apron, hearing the stairs creaking behind her indicating the serpent demon. "How is she, Jin?" Lily asked, looking off to the right blindly.

Jin descended the human staircase to make his way over towards Lily. "She is okay. She didn't throw up anything, so that is a good sign, right?"

The blind woman could feel the serpent demon close to her face making her press a smile for the moment. "It is a start to say the least," she sighed somberly, turning the water on to start running over the dishes. "I am just worried she is going to stop eating and starve herself to death. Her poor sister is trying everything she can to make things work and so is that knight, Thane."

Hearing Thane's name, Jin couldn't help but freeze up a moment and rub his injured side. He wanted to get mad at the sound of his name, but he knew that knight was the only thing lessening his load at the farm.

"Jin?" Lily called, breaking the demon from his trail of thought. "You got awfully quiet. Is something the matter?" She could feel the demon breathing on her, prompting Lily to look over at where she could feel him clearly with her blank eyes.

Jin chuckled nervously, shaking his wild red hair. "No, I am fine. I just get nervous around the mention of knights is all."

"I am sorry," she began sympathetically. "I forget that you're injured and from one of those knights no less." Lily reached behind her to feel of his injuries gently once more. "I promise I am not going to hurt you, I just want to see if they are bandaged well." With the wind serpent demon slightly relaxed, Lily turned around to continue feeling the bandages and how tightly they were wrapped. "Did he put anything on them such as medicine?"

"I don't know," Jin wheezed as she continued to touch his injuries. "I was out cold when he was bandaging me up."

Lily was worried about the wounds the serpent demon had sustained. As far as demons go in general about Eytheria, they usually never bothered really taking good care of their injured ken. If anybody was ever hurt, they had to wait for them to either get better or to die. It was just how the demons were programmed as their society was primitive and not advanced in the ways of medicine. "Come over here to the sofa. I want to get a better look at it."

Jin began to whine and grumble like a little child as he was guided over towards the couch. "Do you have to?" He groaned following behind her.

She couldn't help but chuckle against her hand at how childlike Jin sounded then, seeing fully what her father meant when he said the serpent demons were no different than humans. "I am sorry, but I don't want to worry about the possibility of you getting an infection or your body not healing right, so lie down." Lily stepped to the side to allow Jin room to make it onto the sofa. Hearing the demon slide his way onto the furniture, she felt her way gently about his bandages to find a way to remove them.

Her fingers finally finding a way to pull them off, she began working away at the torn fabric to remove it from Jin's side first. Upon removing it, she heard Jin hiss in pain from the air attacking his opened wound. "Shhh," she soothed, rubbing his stomach tenderly. "You'll be alright." Her fingers touched the bandages to try and make sense of what had been soaked into them. The digits rubbing together to feel of what the liquid was to determine if it was sticky like blood or slick like medicine. When she couldn't decide what it was, Lily brought it to her nose to smell of it. "I can smell something that doesn't smell like blood. It must be medicine…!"

"Is that what it is?" Jin responded breathlessly as he fought back the pain. "Was it supposed to sting as it was?"

"Sometimes medicine does that," Lily explained as she re-bandaged him. Her hand rested gently upon the wind serpent's chest. "Are you feeling okay? Do you need anything?"

Jin's elfin ears perked slightly as he gazed down at the blind woman watching over him closely. A smile crept across his face as he reached down to grasp Lily's caring hands into his demonic. "I'll be alright, Lily. Thank you." His serpent body starting to slide about the furniture item, Jin hefted himself up slowly from where he was lying down. "I have to get going. If I stay here during the night, Silver will be upset and the girls will not take kindly to a snake demon resting in their home."

Feeling Jin's stomach rising upwards, Lily removed herself from his body. "Your bandages should be changed regularly, Jin," the human warned as she stared blankly at the wall. "If they are not, you could get an infection, which could kill you."

"I've been through worse situations," Jin admitted with a toothy grin as his scales rubbed against one another upon the wooden floor. "I will be fine."

"I really worry about you," Lily expressed, bringing her fist towards her chest. "I understand that the serpent demons are primal in their medical and healing ways, but if you're going to take care of your responsibilities, you have to think of _your_ health."

The health lecture was a new one for Jin, and he found it to be irritating slightly as he snorted through his nostrils with a shake of his head. "What do you I suggest I do then, Lily? I cannot stay here with you, or that knight is going to kill me." Jin hissed once more when he breathed, grabbing onto his side, which would on occasion hurt. He was relieved then that Lily was blind as he didn't want her to witness his behavior.

Lily could sense it regardless given the years she had gotten used to living without her eyesight. "What is the matter? You're wheezing again, and you sound like you're in pain when you speak." She reached her hand out to the darkness about her hoping to find the serpent demon only to have Jin pull away quickly with a loud hiss as he wanted Lily to stay back. "Jin, don't do that," Lily begged as she continued to reach out for him still.

Jin continued to coil back, flexing his serpent half in an awkward position to try and escape Lily's oncoming hand. He didn't want to be bothered. His chest was hurting too much lately with where the arrow pierced his skin.

"Jin, stop it!" Lily demanded this time as she grabbed onto his wrist to hold him still. "There is something really wrong with you! I can sense it!" When she felt Jin stop struggling for a moment, she reached out her free hand to try and find the serpent's chest. "You were hit on the side, right?"

"Yes, but don't touch it!" Jin growled as he saw her hand going for his injury.

Lily pulled some of her curly hair behind her ears trying to prevent herself from doing what the serpent demon asked of her. "Does it sting there or is it just painful?"

"It is painful, so don't touch it!" The redhead reiterated. His scales rubbed over one another as he attempted to move his body out of Lily's way.

Lily couldn't help but suddenly feel panic grasp her form. "You might have really hurt something in your side, Jin." She could sense the demon ignoring her prompting her to search for his face to make him look her way. "I need to take you into town or find somebody who can diagnose the problem."

"Lily, you can't do that!" Jin insisted as he was afraid of being killed. Quickly the giant serpent demon hurried himself best he could under the nearest chair in the living room in attempts to hide. His serpent half was unable to successfully hide underneath the piece of furniture, making it simple for anybody to locate him with or without sight. "You're just making things worse! I cannot go into town!"

Hearing the chair rattle, Lily made her way over towards the frightened demon, nearly tripping over his scaly body as she did so. "Jin, nobody is going to kill you, okay? I may be blind, but I know the dispute between humans and demons," Lily reassured him as she knelt down to the quivering wind demon. "There is a doctor in the Eytheria City market that has known my father and been friends with him for years. He was aware of my dad's work and what he did, so I doubt me giving him a snake demon to look at would come as a shock to him."

Jin had covered his eyes with his tail, wanting to believe he was well hidden by doing so. When he heard Lily speak of a doctor in the market place who probably wouldn't care to see him, he removed the tip of his tail from where he had it rested.

Lily reached for Jin's hand she could feel just under his chest to try and pull him out of his ridiculous hiding spot. "He is not going to hurt you. It is not in a doctor's role to kill a patient that comes upon their doorstep." She managed to get Jin to stand upright once again regardless of the pain he was in. "Now come on, I have to get you to the city…under some disguise where nobody will be able to tell you are a demon." Pausing for a moment, Lily's white eyes darted about the room trying to think of a solution. "Tell me, is there a quilt somewhere around here?"

The serpent demon looked about the room to find a quilt, which was handcrafted by Pearl, resting over the sofa he was on not too long ago. "Is this what you what?"

Reaching out to find the fabric Jin was holding on to, Lily found it to be what she was hunting for. "Yes, that is what I am looking for. How long is it?" She let Jin keep a hold of it. "Put it about your head and let it slide down your back and tell me what it covers."

Jin did as Lily asked, hooking the fabric over his head to let it roll down his scaly body. He looked over his shoulder to find it covering a good bit of him, but still some of his serpent half was visible. "Well, it covers a bit of me, but not all of me."

"Hmm," Lily hummed in thought, tapping her finger upon her cheek. "I am sure I can find more blankets and such to cover you. Wait for me outside, Jin. I am afraid if I start searching for more blankets, it will wake one of the girls." Turning around, she made her way towards the staircase. "I sure don't need them finding you out right now."

Jin folded up the quilt he had about his shoulders as he headed outside into the darkness to wait on Lily. Closing the door behind him, the redhead flinched at the pain in his side. "Damn Eytherian knights…this pain is unbearable!" He grumbled mostly to himself.

Thirty minutes later, Lily was able to surface from the house with a few more blankets. "I found some more," she whispered between the two of them. "Now, put these on over your body." The blind woman helped Jin get littered in the blankets she found about the house by herself. "Are you going to be okay? We're going to have to walk a little bit to find somebody who can give us a lift to the market place."

Jin's hand found Lily's. "I will be alright. I've come all the way from Kalrune Village, so I am sure I'll make it. Where do we need to go for a ride?" The serpent demon crept down the stairs of the porch, helping Lily down after him.

Lily carefully descended the staircase, following behind him to the dirt road. She looked about the area in front of her as if she could see though she was merely listening to the sounds coming from all about her. "Even at this time of night there are some men who travel to and from villages to drop off their goods to buyers they are contracted with. It is probably close to nine o'clock right now. Let me see…" Lily pointed to the right of the road, leading away from Eytheria. "We go this way."

Jin offered a confused expression in the matter, twisting his mouth to the side with a raise of his brow. "Are you sure? You do know you're pointing away from the human city, right?"

"Yes, I am very sure." The two starting in that direction, she continued. "There is a milk delivery woman from the Mallow Farm up at Lunar Lake. She always comes this way to make it to Eytheria Market. If we walk ahead of her, she'll never catch up to us, so we have to walk to her."

Hearing of the Mallow family as well as Lunar Lake, Jin froze up a moment thinking back on Dustin and the others. His elfin ears faltered as he gazed up at the full mooned sky with a heavy sigh. _I wonder how they are doing. It seems like forever since I have seen them._

The middle-aged woman could tell Jin stopped for a moment making her do the same. "Jin, is something the matter?" The serpent demon's eyes set upon Lily's. "I heard you sigh like you were upset. Are you feeling okay?"

Jin furrowed his brow, release a brief chuckle muffled by his throat. "Being blind you sure don't miss a lot as one would assume." He managed a weak smile in the moonlight. "I was just thinking about my old nest. They migrated down there, but my friend, Touya, is trying to get them to move to the one behind Kalrune Village."

"I am sure they are alright, Jin," Lily assured, walking cautiously down the road. "You have too much on your mind. Demons your age are supposed to be carefree like human children."

"And I used to be," Jin admitted with a shrug, looking down at Lily. "But Dustin did always tell me I needed to grow up and be more responsible, so I guess I might as well do so and do him a favor."

Lily tilted her head to the side, her blank eyes continuing to look ahead. "Who is Dustin?"

"He is our alpha," Jin answered, sniffing the air when he suddenly caught a familiar scent in the air. His ears flying forwards, he continued inhaling the enticing smell consuming the area.

"What is it, Jin?" Lily asked hearing him sniffing about quickly with a flick of his tongue and flare of his nostrils. "What is it that you smell?"

Jin licked his lips as he got down on his stomach as well as his hands after releasing Lily's hand. "I smell food. A horse is somewhere about here."

Hearing him say that, Lily panicked before reaching down to grab him by the wrist once more to pull him back up off of the ground. "No! No, you are not allowed to do that!" She scolded, shaking her finger in his face. "It could be the farm woman I am waiting for."

The hooves of the beast Jin had smelt could be heard further up the road, trotting against the dirt path before him. With the horse soon coming into view, Lily kept Jin anchored, unaware that the serpent demon hadn't eaten yet, and she wasn't about to have him eat the horse they needed to take them both into town. The black stallion trotted up and over the hill to make the carriage he was pulling come into view with him. The nostrils of the beast flaring, he could pick up a demonic smell making him pause in his tracks and throw his head back with an irritable snort and loud neigh.

"Whoa, whoa," the redheaded woman beckoned upon the wooden seat, pulling back on the reins to try and settle the horse. Upon halting the stallion, she looked over the horse to find Jin and Lily both standing there. "Can I help you?" The Mallow family member wondered with a raise of her brow.

Lily motioned for Jin to stay put where he was, not wanting him to make any sudden movements that might give away who and what he was. "Excuse me; I was wondering if you could give the both of us a lift to the Eytheria Market Place? My friend here is hurt badly, and I need to get him to a good doctor."

The wavy haired redhead looked over at Jin who she could barely see under the blankets and such as well as the darkness consuming the Eytheria plain. "Alright, there is enough room in the back for you both. Just be careful of the milk jars."

"Thank you," Lily said softly with a bow, turning to Jin to guide him to the back of the carriage. "Come on, dear. We have a ride to the market place. Be quick now."

"'Dear'?" Jin wondered with a raise of his thin brow as he was guided behind the carriage. The term was unfamiliar to him. The only time it was used was to describe a wild animal usually seen about the open fields in the early morning. "I am not a dear."

Lily pressed her finger to her lips to make Jin hush. "Quiet now," she ordered, helping the injured serpent demon onboard. "If anybody hears you saying anything weird, they will wonder what is up with you. So do not say or do anything that could give away your origin." Stepping up the steps with Jin's help, she made her way over to one of the seats in the back of the carriage. "Besides, it is just a name referring to a loved one." Finding their seats, Lily called up to the Mallow farm girl. "We are ready."

"Alright, we will be there soon enough," the young farm girl assured them with a tap of the reins, prompting the confused stallion to continue onwards.

Jin made sure to slide his scales back under the blankets and the quilt, which covered his demon half and appendages, tilting his head to the side with a raise of his ears at Lily's comment. "You called me 'dear', because I am a loved one to you?"

A soft smile appeared upon Lily's face as she hummed her response at first. She closed her eyes a moment to picture Jin there within her mind as a little human child not but probably five years old. "You're so inquisitive, just like a little boy." Lily placed her hands within her lap, sighing to herself at the young demon's behavior, still finding it intriguing. "I would say you are a loved one, Jin. It is a shame that nobody else can get to know you, for I am sure they would feel the same way."

The serpent demon merely beamed at Lily, a part of him wishing the human race could be as accepting as her.

--

It took awhile for the carriage to finally pull before the drawbridge of the Eytheria market walls. The jerk of the cart caused Jin to get alert prompting Lily to settle him with a slight movement of her hand. Up front, the Mallow family girl could be heard speaking with the guards who manned the drawbridge as she was trying to get them to lower it for her.

"What's going on?" Jin asked, grabbing the quilt and blankets to keep them firmly on his body, nervous at the smell of iron so close to him.

"Be still; she is asking the guards to let us in," Lily informed quietly, raising her hand to keep Jin stationed knowing that the knights made him nervous.

"It is rather late for you to be going about serving your milk beverages, Mary," one of the knights could be heard saying beyond the cart's wooden walls. The guard stepped slightly closer towards the stallion pulling the cart to find the shadow of Jin in the back where the milk was being kept. "Ah, I see you have passengers this time."

"Yes, and one of them is in need of assistance," Mary went on to explain. "He is injured and needs a doctor."

The knights could see nothing abnormal about the situation prompting them to lower the bridge for Mary to cross over with the others. "You may pass," one on the post said simply, standing aside upon the bridge being completely lowered.

Having sustained a painful injury from the knights, Jin couldn't help but close his eyes tightly and whimper mostly to himself. He didn't want to get found out within the 'creatures' home. Jin didn't have the strength or the courage at that moment to even consider defending himself. Lily could sense the wind serpent's pain, reaching across from where she was sitting to touch her hand upon his.

"Be calm, Jin," Lily advised once more. "I know you're scared, but you'll be alright." Moving from where she was sitting, Lily made her way up to where Mary was. "The doctor I want him to see is located close to the castle to the north of the city. If you could get us to the gates leading into the palace, I can get us to the doctor's house from there."

Mary nodded at Lily's directions as she guided the horse through the cobblestoned streets of the quiet market place. It was very quiet for a human city and only a few crickets could be heard as well as the tranquil splashing of the city's water fountain. Only a few lights could be seen within the windows of some of the houses, prompting only a little bit of light to illuminate the way. "I can do that for you. We will be there soon."

Jin attempted to relax undercover in the human city. He would get rather calm under the rocking of the cart they were hitching a ride within only to smell the iron of the knights prompting him to widen his eyes and act nervous under his disguise. Lily could feel his anxious behavior from where she was sitting across from him. It made her a bit nervous as well though she tried to stay calm for the both of them when the cart finally came to a halt.

"We're at the castle's gate," Mary responded over her shoulder. "Do you need anything else while I am here?"

Lily got to her feet, offering her hand to Jin to make her way out of the back of the cart with his help. "No, but thank you so much, Miss. Mallow. We really needed the lift." She made sure that Jin made it cautiously down the wooden stairs onto the cold stone below. "If we can ever repay the favor, let us know."

Mary merely nodded with a smile. "It was nothing. Both of you take care of yourself, and I wish your friend better health."

"Thank you," Jin responded as the carriage was turned back down the road to head to the stores Mary had to deliver her milk to before they closed. As he stood there not too far from the guards, he got edgy once more and slinked back behind Lily with a low growling sound.

"Jin, don't do that," Lily begged as she looked over her left and right as where the sound was coming from kept moving with the serpent demon. Turning around, she searched frantically for the demon to pull him back up to her level with her blank eyes gazing past him. "Come with me; the doctor who was a friend to my father is down this way."

The blind woman made it through the winding back alleyways no problem. Her fingers soon graced the stone walls to try and make out the designs and textures in attempts to come to a familiar trinket she recalled when she was younger. Jin merely followed behind her carefully, low to the ground as it was a habit when smelling so much danger in one place. Her fingers coming across a knocker modeled in that of a phoenix, Lily smiled widely recognizing it. "Here we are!" She exclaimed in a high whisper. Her hand gripping onto the silver knocker, she tapped it against the wooden door to try and get the doctor's attention.

Nothing within the house stirred until a minute or so later when candlelight soon could be seen peeking through the curtains before the windows. "I'm coming; I'm coming," a male responded behind the door. The door creaked on its hinges as the doctor, somewhere in his late 50s made himself known to whoever it was that was desperate for his attention so late. He had a beard, very white in color about his face that nearly covered his mouth. He wore glasses, which fit perfectly about his old, tired face. "Hmm? Lily? What are you doing here?"

"Doctor, I have come with a special patient, who I need you to look at," Lily insists. "May we come inside?"

The doctor looked over at the covered male he could barely see in the darkness and his poor eyesight wasn't helping either. He could tell from the shivering that the person was frightened for whatever reason. With a wrinkle of his nose, not wanting to be up that late, he stepped to the side with the candle in his hand. "Come on in. I can have a look at your friend tonight."

Lily ushered Jin inside of the house quickly before coming in behind him. The door closed behind them, Jin felt safe once more to an extent though he was still unaware how this human would act in seeing he was actually a serpent demon. "Thank you for this, Dr. Willard," Lily praised stepping in between the two. "I am sorry about coming in so late, but it was an emergency. I fear for this man's well being."

"So who is your friend?" Dr. Willard asked, trying to make out the male under the quilt and blankets. "Why is it that he won't show himself to me?"

"Well, he is a bit…shy…and scared," Lily admitted, making her way over to Jin to touch his scaly cheeks. "Jin, it is okay. Dr. Willard isn't going to hurt you." Her fingers massaging his hard skin, she tried to coax the frightened demon out from hiding.

Jin's elfin ears faltered as he thought about it for a moment. Looking about the room to check his surroundings, he finally grabbed a hold of the quilt about his head to move it from his body to show off his demonic half. He stood there, erected on his serpent half with his ears turned forwards to hear what the human doctor might have to say.

Dr. Willard jumped back realizing what the creature was. "Holy hell, Lily, that thing is huge! Don't tell me you're going to do this to me again!" He exclaimed, jumping back.

"Doctor, please!" Lily begged reaching for the man she heard just yelp in shock. "He is only a baby, and he needs your help!"

The startled doctor watched as Jin curled himself up in a defensive position, not wanting to get hurt by any human hands as he was in enough pain already. His crimson scales were something to behold there in the candlelight. It was like a trail of shimmering blood moving about seamlessly upon his floor. The length of the serpent demon's body was outstanding and far bigger than anything he had ever seen before when it came to serpent demons. "How can something that big be just a baby?" He wondered in amazement.

Jin twisted his mouth to the side as he pouted at the doctor and Lily's choice of words. Coiling his body up in front of him, he overlapped his arms upon his scales to rest his head there for the moment."I am not a baby," he griped mostly to himself.

"He's just-he's not from around here and that is probably why he's so big for his age," Lily explained with a shrug of her shoulders. "He made a promise to the Cormac woman that he would protect her daughters, who are now orphans. Jin got badly injured by the knights when trying to feed a female serpent tonight, and I am worried it might be life threatening for him." She brought her fist up to her chest, pleading with her blank eyes. "Please, Dr. Willard, please…he's not an evil demon, and I don't want to hear he is dead from something that could have been prevented with your help."

Dr. Willard fixed his glasses, which were sliding down his nose, trying to make a decision on the matter. He released a sigh of defeat, shaking his head. "Alright, I will take a look at him." The doctor walked over to the patient table in the back right section of his bedroom. The wooden table was resting up against the wall near a few pictures and old memos posted and penned to the wooden wall and was hidden by a curtain stationed about it. "Come here, demon," the doctor called as he waved towards the table, "so that I may have a look at you."

Jin was hesitant at first as he looked over at Lily with a raise of his elfin ears. He was like a human child going to the doctor for the first time. The blind woman could sense Jin staring at her, making her slightly gaze over in his direction. "Go on," she encouraged softly with a wave of her hand. "I'll make sure nothing goes wrong."

His ears faltering, Jin turned his attention back over to the doctor before making his way slowly over towards the table the human man was pointing at. Jin's scaly belly rubbed against the floor as he made his way over towards the stand covered in a white cloth. He looked about the interesting object wondering what he was supposed to do.

"Get up on top. Can you do that?" The doctor asked. He showed he wanted to help but was too nervous to touch the demon.

Jin raised up on his serpent half to tower over the table, lying out on top of it only to find himself unable to stay completely on top of the small piece of furniture prompting him to coil up his serpent half about the stand. From having to move about on such a small area, it prompted the redhead to wheeze a few times at the pain attacking his chest area from where he was injured. The doctor could hear the horrible sound he was creating, making him concerned.

"I see you had a bad run in with knights here," Dr. Willard said, reaching for the bandages about Jin's side to pull them away to see the puncture wound, which could only be caused by an arrow head. The air touching the open injury caused the serpent demon to hiss and coil back. Dr. Willard jumped back slightly only to see that Jin was just unhappy with the pain. "Whoa, whoa, it's okay; it's okay. Just relax." He was quiet a moment, trying to examine the injury with a fix of his glasses, which saw fit to slide down the slope of his nose again. "I hear you're in pain when you move. Is it from this injury or the other one?"

"It is on my side. Right here," Jin answered, pointing to his ribcage.

The doctor was surprised hearing the demon speak so well in the English language. "Heh, apparently it speaks too." When he saw the redhead shoot him an irritable look, he coughed against his hand nervously. "I am just saying I have never heard a demon speak in our tongue before."

Jin watched closely as the human doctor reached for his side. "We mostly speak demonic, but that is only so humans don't go crazy over the thought we understand them. For some reason, it is too much for them to comprehend that we know their language."

Dr. Willard began to gently touch the area. Jin closed his eyes tightly and growled in pain with his nails digging into the table beneath him. "Well, I don't feel that anything is broken and there isn't a bruise on the skin. When does it hurt?"

"When you touch it, that's for damn sure!" Jin snarled through his clinched teeth. "Also, whenever I move a bit it does." The table beneath him began to groan upon his serpent half starting to wrap about the legs of the piece of furniture. He was tightening his grip upon the wood to release the pain he was enduring.

The doctor kept the bandage removed as he headed over to his cabinets lined with different kinds of medicine and such to pull out what he needed as well as other wraps he could use to re-bandage Jin. "I think you bruised a bone, demon. When that arrow tried to strike you, it could only go so far with how thick your demonic skin is, so it just tapped one of your rib bones." He closed the wooden cabinet, heading back over towards the redhead with the items he needed in his hands. "You're lucky. If a human had been struck like that, their ribs might have been damaged or their lungs pierced."

Jin continued to move his serpent half about, unable to keep still. Most of his body was scrunched up about the corner of the room upon the table. "So what does that mean for me?"

Dr. Willard sat down upon the wicker stool to tend to Jin's side once more regardless of the irritable hissing sounds he made upon him doing so. He was starting to get a little bit braver in this process. Pouring the liquid medicine onto a clean towel, he dabbed the wound carefully. "It means you cannot do any activity that will strain your ribs, so when it comes to a serpent demon like you that means no fighting, less walking, and no sexual activity."

The redheaded demon sighed. "Well that makes things less enjoyable."

"Maybe next time you'll reconsider doing something foolish if that is how you feel," Dr. Willard expressed as he looked up at Jin through his glasses seriously. Taking the bandages in his possession, he began to wrap the wind serpent tightly about the chest. "Now, let me see your arm."

Jin hesitantly held out his injured arm to have the doctor look at it as he was feeling a bit irritable at his words. "I have to get back to my nest soon," he hissed having the other wound exposed to the air. "A young demon I have been assigned to needs me there."

"Well, I am sure the young demon can wait a moment." Dr. Willard cleaned out the puncture wound as he did the last one. "I'll have you up and on your way in no time. You just have to be careful with yourself from now on."


	16. Chapter 16

_**Author's Notes**_: Just a reminder to ignore any future chapter updates—I am just going back and fixing typos and what not that are bugging me every time I get bored and decided to double check myself. (lol)

We have the lovely 'woman' discussion in this one. Should prove to be fun. XP

--

The night hours were slowly creeping by as Neda's fingers twitched from the slumber she was within close to seven in the morning. Her body rousing from the deep sleep, she opened her eyes to peer over at the window, where she could just now see the darkened sky starting to light up a bit with the sun about to take over. Rolling over onto her side, she rubbed the sleep from her eyes to check and see that Blythe was still in bed. Neda pulled the covers off of her body to make it to her feet, walking over towards the bedroom door to open it slowly and peek outside.

Neda found Lily to not be within the house, so she made her way down the stairs and to the kitchen area. She was feeling quite thirsty. Making it to the cabinets above the sink, Neda grabbed a clean glass before hunting for the milk bottles to pour herself a little bit. She drank a bit of the cow's milk while heading into the living room that was connected to the kitchen to still find no trace of Lily. "Guess the woman went home."

She sat down upon the cushions of the sofa, lying back to enjoy her beverage for the time being. Neda was still feeling tired, but she was very thirsty for the moment. She decided to enjoy the quiet with her drink though her stomach was starting to really bother her. "Why won't it stop hurting?" She whined to herself, lying down to try and settle it. Upon doing so, she could hear a bit of talking outside of the door. She recognized one of the voices as Lily's but not the other.

Lily was helped up the stairs by Jin. "Do you swear to me you'll keep yourself in check, Jin? You know I could really use you here when Thane is working the night shifts at Kalrune."

"I promise, Lily," Jin swore with a sigh. "If I die now, I doubt Pearl will give me a moment's peace in the afterlife."

The door soon opened, allowing Neda out onto the porch upon hearing her mother's name and somebody who knew her. She stared at Jin who was quick to duck back under the cover of the quilt and blankets he was wearing feeling extremely nervous now as Neda was looking at him wide-eyed. "You-you knew my mother? Who are you?" She asked, walking a bit closer to the disguised demon.

Lily couldn't help but panic herself hearing that Neda was up much earlier than usual. When she heard the young farm girl coming closer to Jin, she was quick to raise her hand to stop Neda. "Neda, this is a friend of your mother's. He was asked to watch you and your sister on her behalf."

"Why is he wearing my mom's quilt and our blankets?" Neda felt need to ask as she found it odd.

"He is injured, Neda," Lily explained quickly. "He also needed them to-umm-keep his temperature regulated." Finding that to be a good enough excuse for a small kid, Lily went with it. "Your mom's friend has a bad temperature issue."

Neda wasn't sure what to say to that as she could only really concentrate on the fact her stomach was bothering her. "So, what's your name?"

"My name is not important," Jin felt need to say as he watched Neda carefully, noticing she was rubbing her stomach a lot. "Lily," he whispered to the blind woman next to him. "I can smell dried blood on her, and she is rubbing her stomach. I think she's injured."

Hearing that much information, Lily knew what it could possibly be, smiling softly to herself as she made her way over to Neda. "Neda," she whispered, tilting her head to the side, "did your mother ever talk to you about possibly having something called a period?"

Neda was confused by the term as she looked back and forth nervously wondering if she was injured or sick. "N-No, she never did. Why, is something wrong with me?"

"Of course not," said Lily with a tender smile, placing her hand upon Neda's shoulder even if the farm girl was perfectly fine to not be touched by the blind woman. "You are on your period. Every girl gets it when they have turned into a young woman." She directed Neda towards the house with her blank eyes looking at the door she knew had to be there somewhere. "Why don't you go on inside and wait for me? I will help you with that in just a moment."

The young farm girl kept her eyes on the covered serpent demon wondering why he continued to hide his face from her. Not having the energy to really pry any further, Neda opened the front door to allow herself inside, so she could go lie down.

Lily made sure that Neda was away from the door and windows before turning to Jin. "You have to go now!" She urged quickly, reaching her hand out to take the quilt and blankets back. "That was close, and we don't need Neda finding you out right now!"

Jin removed the items from his body to hand them over to Lily before lowering down to the ground to back up out of sight. "I will see you later then, Lily. I will be back later tonight if I can make it." Diving forwards, Jin hurried out of sight towards Kalrune Village in hopes of not being spotted.

The blind woman felt the wind blow slightly about her, prompting some of her curly hair to be tossed about her face. She listened to Jin scurry quickly out of sight with a worry filled sigh. "Just be careful, Jin. With that injury, you really need to take care of yourself." Folding the blankets back up in her arms, she turned towards the front door to let herself inside where she asked Neda to wait for her.

With the door opening and closing quietly, Neda looked over at the entering Lily. She brought her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms about them. "So what is this 'period' I am going through? It is really making me sick."

Lily brought the blankets and quilt over to the empty chair to remind herself to wash them later. Her hands folded before her dress, she gazed blankly down at Neda. "It has that affect on people, sweetheart." Lily felt her way to the sofa where she could hear Neda was sitting upon the young farm girl speaking to Lily earlier. "When your period starts, it means you're finally a young woman." She raked the palms of her hands against her dress upon sitting down to try and get the wrinkles out of it she could feel. "Every few weeks or so, you'll feel rather different, and you'll start bleeding."

"I'll feel this gross every time it happens?" Neda wondered with a groan.

"Sadly, that is how it goes," Lily said sympathetically. "You'll feel lethargic, a little sick in the stomach area, and rather thirsty considering the blood you'll be loosing." She reached over and touched Neda's hand once Lily was able to find it. "But do not worry, dear. I have a few things to help with that."

Neda still felt uncomfortable around the blind woman who held demons who killed her parents in high regard. She managed to slide her hand out of Lily's with a subtle sigh. "What about my bleeding? It will ruin my clothes."

Lily raised her finger slightly, pushing herself up off of the sofa. "I have something for that, but I will have to go back into the market to find the things I need to make it for you." Even if the night was long, Lily knew she had to at least make breakfast for the young girls before taking a nap. "I just got back from there with your mom's friend, but I am sure I can find the energy to do it again," said Lily as she searched for the pans and eggs she would need to make breakfast.

The young girl thought back on the faceless man who was at her doorstep earlier. "What was wrong with him? Is he going to be okay?"

"He'll be just fine, Neda," Lily answered, kneeling down to light the logs in the center of the clay oven. "He was injured when trying to take care of a loved one, but a friend of my father's checked him out. The poor man just had a bruised rib is all." The fire soon starting, Lily pulled back out of harm's way of the soon burning embers. "Will you do me a favor and go wake your sister for me? I need to make breakfast so I can lie down for a moment."

Neda rolled her eyes and got up from the sofa to make it up the creaky staircase and to the bedroom she shared with her sister. She made her way to Blythe's bedside to wake her sleeping sister. "Blythe, wake up. It is past 7:30."

Blythe groaned slightly before finally opening her eyes to have them focus on her sister who was up before her for once. "Neda, what are you doing up so early?" She paused a bit finding that to sound weird as the girls were usually up around six or so in the morning when their parents were alive. "When I say that, I mean 'early' for _you_ lately."

"I couldn't sleep suddenly," Neda explained, sitting down as she could suddenly feel her energy leaving her once more. "I still feel very tired though." She rubbed her weary eyes with a soft yawn to express her exhaustion.

Sighing softly through her nostrils, Blythe nodded towards Neda's bed. "Why don't you sleep until breakfast? If I allow you to do that will you promise me you'll at least eat something?" The elder Cormac sister had been having a hard time fighting with Neda in attempts to regulate her sleeping pattern as well as her eating habits. She felt a bit of bribery was the next best bet at getting her sister to eat. "At eight, Thane will be here. I better go ahead and get ready for the day."

Neda watched as Blythe was quick to throw the covers off of her and head for the bathroom they shared. "You were never this eager to get ready for mornings before. Ever since that knight has been here, you've been weirdly lady like."

Blythe halted at the bathroom door upon hearing Neda's comments towards her. "Neda, what are you talking about?" She couldn't help but try to hide the bright blush, which crept its way across her face at what she knew Neda was insinuating. "It is just when company is over I should at least look a little bit decent. Mamma always told us to do that growing up."

Sliding off of the side of the bed belonging to her sister, Neda made her way over towards her own messy bedcovers to lie upon them with a somber sigh. "Well, mom isn't here anymore. Besides, I know your true intentions with him, and once it happens, I will be left alone."

Blythe shook her head sadly at Neda's reaction towards the feelings the elder sibling had towards the Eytherian knight. "Neda, nothing is written in stone right now. Besides, even if anything does happen with me and Thane, I plan on it being years from now." She made her way over to Neda's bedside to place her hand upon the young girl's shoulder. "What kind of sister would I be to just up and leave my only family member behind?"

"Thanks," Neda mumbled slightly as she wanted to just sleep at that moment more than ever at the thought of her sister leaving her at all.

Not knowing what else to say, Blythe got back up and headed to the bathroom once more. She stopped within the doorway to look back over at Neda still worried for her sister. _Things will get better with her soon. They just have to_, Blythe practically pleaded in her mind before closing the bathroom door behind her.

Every slithering motion Jin took hastily back towards the graveyard behind Kalrune Village pained the serpent demon's body. With the sun threatening to rise to bring wake to the humans, Jin tried with all his might to make it back to Silver knowing she would get upset if she woke up alone once more. The dead trees soon coming within sight, the redhead hurried to the old shack he was asked to stay in to keep the young Silver safe until she was ready to give birth. His hand grabbing onto the doorknob, he turned it to allow himself inside once more to find Silver still asleep.

Silver however heard the door shut, causing her serpent body to steadily move about from the twisted formation it was entangled within. Turning over slightly, she saw Jin there at the door looking rather winded to say the least. "Jin, what is the matter? Don't tell me you were outside for the night." When she saw Jin about to say 'yes' to that, she gasped with worry. "You shouldn't do that! You are injured!"

Jin stayed against the door prompting Silver to make her way over towards the large serpent demon. He gazed down at her with a tender smile. "And you shouldn't worry so much," he said, reaching down to rub her belly, which was starting to swell a bit from the eggs forming inside of her. "You're pregnant and need to be careful yourself."

His hand there on her stomach, Silver reached down and touched the back of his hand. Looking up through her stringy white hair at the wind serpent, she nodded at him. "I know. Don't worry; they're not coming anytime soon. Anyways, what about you? How are you feeling?"

"Well," Jin paused, thinking about the doctor visit he had in the human's city. "I was told that I bruised my rib bone, so I have to be careful from here onwards, or I could really hurt myself further."

"So what does that mean for you?" Silver inquired with a raise of her thin, white brow.

Jin rolled his hands over Silver's shoulders to bring her closer to his body gently, minding his injuries as he did so. "It just means I have to be careful for the coming days, love. I will be alright. Don't worry about me."

Silver kissed the broad chest of the wind demon she had. Tasting of his skin, she was able to remind herself that he was alive and there with her. Resting her cheek upon his torso regardless, she pressed her palms against his back gently to feel of him there with her eyes closed. "I am just glad you're alright," she whispered against his body.

Before anything else could be said and done, a loud banging came from the door behind the wind demon, startling them both. "Jin, I need to speak with you!" Beldon called eagerly. He sounded angry as well.

Spinning around quickly, regardless of how much it hurt to do so, Jin opened the door to see the alpha of the wind nest there. "Beldon, what is the matter?"

"Your-current alpha leader is here with some friends of his!" Beldon hissed angrily at having a foreign alpha male come into his territory and become demanding. "I want you to get him out of here!" He pointed back towards the forested area leading to the nesting site.

Jin could tell he was adamant about the subject. He saw Silver was looking rather worried about it as well fearing what fights may break out. "Wait here, Silver," Jin demanded softly. Silver's hands were quick to grab onto his wrist, not wishing him to leave. He witnessed as she shook her head several times, wanting to deny him from leaving her in the condition Jin was in. "Silver, please, I have to go!"

Tears started to well up and cascade down her fair complexion as Jin finally forced his wrist from her hands. Silver leaned against the doorway as she watched Jin slither quickly to Dustin and the others, who he had been separated from for too long. She could only show her frustrations and anger at her father through her eyes. Silver knew if she said anything to her father she would be punished for it given her place.

Tearing through the forest, Jin could hear the disgruntled hisses of the serpent demons about the wind nesting site. Dustin was towering over another serpent fiend of the nest who found fit to try and intimidate the alpha by snapping and spitting at the intruding beast. Seeing the dark haired and skin toned serpent leader, Jin reached out for him quickly. "Dustin, stop it!" He begged while managing to grab onto Dustin's upper arm.

Dustin bared his teeth at Jin even if he knew who the redhead was. His fingers grasped Jin tightly about the neck to force the injured demon to the ground beneath them. "What the hell do you think you're doing here!" Dustin demanded to know irritably through his teeth as the wind serpent struggled underneath the alpha. "I took you two bastards under my care and this is how you repay me!"

Jin hissed in dismay as his body was raked with pain from his encounter with the knights. Grabbing onto Dustin's wrists, Jin tried to pry his hands off of him as his body thrashed about in agony. "D-Dustin …**stop**!" He pleaded through his gasping for air.

Beldon came upon the scene soon enough to find most of his nest in an uproar over the fight, feeling that Jin was apart of their nest now and the intruder had no right to attack him in such a manner. "Stop this at once!" He demanded angrily as his nest threatened to attack Dustin, Finlay, and Aland if they didn't leave the territory at once. "Let the young boy go! He is with my daughter!"

Dustin finally released Jin's neck allowing the young serpent demon to breathe for the moment. Touya was quick to pull from behind Finlay and Aland to check on his friend. His chilly hand resting upon Jin's upper shoulder tenderly, he furrowed his brow in worry as Touya gazed down at his ally. Snorting out his irritation, Dustin turned towards Beldon. "That 'young boy' happens to be part of my clan! Only his foolishness brought him to your nest!"

"I don't care how he came to be here," Beldon retorted angrily, hissing at Dustin with a snap of his fangs at the other alpha's neck. "The important thing is he is here to help my daughter and my nest!"

Backing up away from Beldon's snapping jaws, Dustin shot forward in retaliation with a hiss and a bite as well threatening to clamp his jaws down upon the wind alpha's neck. "Regardless of what you say, he's still my responsibility!" Dustin was not going to allow this other male win in this fight. Jin was like his son, and he wasn't about to lose another member of his family.

Having to hear the two fighting for him, Jin managed to turn over with Touya's help. "Dustin…Beldon, please, stop it!" Ignoring the pain for a moment, the wind serpent managed to heft himself upright to look between the two alphas. "Beldon, please, can I speak with Dustin for a moment?"

Beldon didn't like the thought of an unsupervised conversation going on with an outsider when it came to Jin even if that outsider was the wind beast's last leader. Shaking his head angrily, he spat at Dustin with his pointed ears twisted slightly back. "Fine, but you better not make off with him, or I will track you down myself!" Beldon threatened to Dustin.

Jin didn't have a moment to say anything as Dustin was quick to grab the wind master by the wrist and pull him off to the side away from the angry wind nest so they could speak to one another. When it was soon just the two of them, Dustin spun Jin around so they were face to face. He narrowed his eyes with an angry hiss. "How could you do this to me after everything I said to you! How dare you, Jin!"

"Dustin, please," Jin pleaded, his elfin ears faltering into sadness. "I know you wanted to continue to expand your nest, but this one is already expanded. It is probably the only other large serpent nest out there." He witnessed as Dustin refused to listen by crossing his arms over his ivory chest and turning to look the other way, but Jin was determined to get his leader to understand as he crawled steadily into Dustin's view. "Dustin, we cannot continue to travel around the way we are. We are bound to get killed. Besides, with no females in our nest, we will all die out…"

The brunette serpent leader didn't want to admit that Jin was actually making sense for once as he tried to continue to pretend he was ignoring the young demon. He had wanted to grow his nest steadily into something worth cherishing, and while he cared and cherished those already within it, they sadly had no ways of making their numbers any bigger with most of the female serpents being killed off whenever they were caught nesting alone. "Jin," Dustin began with a sigh, "I would love to make my nest bigger, but you're asking me to turn down my title as alpha to some nobody. And I refuse to do that!"

Jin brought his finger up to the corner of his mouth to think of a solution. "I'll-umm-I'll talk to Beldon about it. There has to be a way you can have your own nesting site in their giant clan. I am sure he wouldn't mind it."

Shaking his head with a slightly present smile, Dustin uncrossed his arms before forcibly guiding Jin towards them. "You are impossible," he muttered against the redhead's wild hair, holding onto the young demon like he would his son.

Jin felt like he was a child again making him groan and wiggle against Dustin's embrace regardless of how much it hurt to do so. "Dustiiiiiiiiiiin!" He whined, pushing against the alpha to try and get free. Once free, Jin noticed his wild hair was messier than before prompting him to fix it by rubbing his hands back and forth against his scalp. "I'll go talk to Beldon about you and the others staying."

Dustin pointed at the bandages about Jin's chest and arm finally as he wanted to know what had happened. "Please tell me you weren't stupid enough to get caught by humans feeding that woman you have shacked up somewhere."

With a roll of his eyes and another irritable groan, Jin nodded. "Yes. I went to Kalrune to get some chickens for her, and they caught me. I was told that I bruised my rib bone, so be gentle if you're going to teach me a lesson again," he warned, bringing his arms up to block Dustin from grabbing him again as the alpha crept forwards.

"You-_bruised_ your rib bone?" Dustin found the terminology odd and not like something a serpent demon would say. He narrowed his crimson eyes to study Jin closely. "Jin, who told you that?"

Jin looked about feeling rather cornered knowing he couldn't explain to Dustin that a human of all creatures treated him. "Eh-What? One of the serpents here told me that."

"They couldn't have," the alpha interrupted the stuttering Jin quickly. "We know when something is bruised only on the skin and how to tend to it. A bone being bruised of all things…only _**human**_ medical treatments would know that." Dustin inhaled sharply at realizing what probably occurred. "Jin! You didn't!"

His ears faltered in fear, Jin slunk downwards and back away from his leader who despised humans with his ever being. "I didn't!" He exclaimed quickly in his defense. "I didn't, Dustin; I promise!" Jin hated to lie to anybody, but he was too badly injured to put up with the consequences Dustin would still unleash upon him considering his hatred for the human world.

Dustin was quick to grab Jin by the ear, pulling him upright so that the serpent demon would be forced to look him in the eyes. "At least look at me when you're miserably lying to me!" He growled angrily though most of him was consumed in worry at the possibility of Jin dying at their hands. "How could you do that even for the sake of health! Those humans could have killed you!"

"A friend of mine took me, Dustin," Jin howled over his pain as his sensitive ear was still being pinched. "Her father studied our kind, and she finds us interesting. She wouldn't lead me to harm!"

"You let a human woman direct you! I don't care who her father was; she is still a human!" Dustin growled angrily. "For this alone, I should cast you out of my care and leave you with Beldon!"

"Dustin, please!" Jin begged, reaching for the alpha's torso. His fingers touching the sides of the serpent leader, Jin managed to bring himself close to Dustin's chest. With his ear soon released, he rested the side of his head upon the ivory chest of his alpha. "Please don't do this to me…!" It looked as though the wind serpent were hugging Dustin tightly. Jin held onto Dustin's upper arms tightly. "Please, please, please, I didn't mean to anger you…"

Dustin remained there stiffly with his arms close to his sides and his eyes staring beyond Jin as if the demon groveling for forgiveness upon his chest was not there. He wanted to stand there thinking of what to do while drowning out the pleading coming from Jin. It wasn't until the younger serpent demon begged Dustin not to leave him that something snapped within his mind. His eyes widened a moment as he thought back to the very first time he met Jin and Touya.

He had found them together, curled up under a Paluu Tree branch on a stormy night. They had been left there by Jin's elder brother, Suzaku, shivering in the cold and starving. Dustin remembered finding them when searching for food for an injured Finlay while Aland watched over him back at their nest. They were so tiny to him and were even fearful of their own kind.

"You poor things," Dustin whispered as the storm raged onwards. He reached for the one that was awake. The redhead looked up at the towering, intimidating serpent demon wondering what Dustin wanted from him. Dustin recalled how Jin coiled backwards out of his reach, afraid to be touched by anybody. "Shhh, shhh, it is alright."

Jin was like a frightened housecat. His baby blue eyes were wide with fear as he watched the incoming hand closely making it difficult for Dustin to even bother petting Jin reassuringly on the head. "Don't hurt me," he begged with a pathetic whimpering sound.

Being that there were so few serpent demons left lately, that was the furthest thing from Dustin's mind as he slipped his fingers under Jin's chin to rub him there. "I am not going to hurt you," he promised softly. Dustin looked around the dark atmosphere, sniffing the air with a flare of his nostrils and slip of his forked tongue. "You two are alone? Where is your nest?"

"My brother is here," Jin answered, resting his chin down upon Touya's metallic looking scales.

"Is that your brother?" Dustin wondered pointing down to the slumbering Touya.

Jin gazed down at the ice serpent, shaking his head. "No, my brother isn't here now…he left us to take care of ourselves while he went to get himself something to eat."

Dustin hooked his index finger before bringing it before his mouth to think. "Your brother just left you here unattended? You both are so young; he shouldn't have done that." Sighing softly, Dustin knew it wouldn't be right to just take them without notifying the brother. "Have you both eaten at all? You look rather sickly."

The redhead merely shook his head. He didn't feel like saying anything that could anger his elder brother as he was the only home that the two had.

Biting his lower lip, Dustin reached down to help Jin stand upon his scaly body. "I'll get you something to eat for the night. Then I need to go back to my own nest."

"No, don't leave us!" Jin begged, grabbing tightly onto Dustin's upper arm weakly. "Please, I don't want to remain with my brother anymore! He is going to make my friend and me sick…we cannot stay here any longer."

Dustin didn't very well know Jin's older brother at that time, but he figured any serpent demon who left his younger brother alone in a raging storm with no protection or any food wasn't all that caring. Smiling down at Jin, he held onto the wind serpent reassuringly. "Alright, alright," he whispered once more over the thunder claps. "I will take you to my nest." He ran his fingers through Jin's dampened hair to try and settle the young demon. "But first, I have to get you both something to eat." With that said, Dustin pried from Jin to slither towards the smell of deer he had caught earlier. "Wake your friend and come with me."

The hunt that night went well. Dustin recalled being able to bring down a rather large buck for the night before taking it back to his nest at the Cormac Farm. For that one night, he allowed the first bite to the two strangers even though the alpha usually had the first bite after a kill for the nest. That night they were all wrapped up together, keeping warm from the storm, which continued to rage onwards. It was possibly the one time anybody felt complete.

Finally coming back to the present time, Dustin looked down at the still sobbing wind master. His fingers resting upon his forehead, Dustin shook his head before finally prying Jin off of his body. "Fine, I forgive you. Just-go talk to this Beldon demon." His scales rubbed against one another as he turned to leave Jin alone for the time being.

"Thank you, Dustin," Jin breathed with relief.


	17. Chapter 17

Beldon crossed his arms over his chest, listening to Jin's begging to keep Dustin and the small clan he had within the boundaries of the graveyard. "Jin, I am not going to allow somebody I hardly even know into my nest let alone give him his own."

"Beldon, please," Jin begged, faltering his elfin ears. "Dustin isn't going to cause any problems." He could tell Beldon wasn't going to listen at first as the alpha of the wind nest looked off to the side, avoiding Jin's gaze. "He means a lot to me. You have to understand that. He saved me from my brother, and I owe him a lot."

The alpha was quiet for a little while, twisting his mouth to the side to think on it. He released an irritable sigh not wanting to lose Jin, but Beldon knew that he might if he didn't consider letting Dustin in. "Tell your friends to sleep elsewhere until I have come to a decision." Beldon turned around on his scaly body to head back to his nest. "I need to talk to the Lord Drake about this in meditation."

Jin knew that was as good an answer as he was going to get at that moment. "Thank you," he said softly. "That is all I can ask for." He watched as Beldon took his leave of the area they decided to meet up within. His heavy, serpent body crushed the leaves beneath him as he made his way back to Dustin to relay the news to him.

With Thane excused from his guard position in Kalrune, he made his way to the Cormac Farm upon his black, armored war stallion. The hooves of his horse beat against the dirt path before him as they made it up the hill and to the area belonging to the Cormac family. Thane's mind was set on the attack he endured at the village. _Since when did serpent demons obtain magical powers to be able to bend nature to their will? This could be problematic…_, Thane thought as he halted his steed just outside of the farm house. He made his way up the stairs, knocking on the front door. "Neda? Blythe? It is me, Thane."

Lily continued the breakfast for the girls when she heard Thane knocking at the front door. Setting the pan down upon the clay oven, heated by the fire, she made her way carefully over to the door to allow Thane inside. "Thane, it is so good to hear from you," said Lily with a smile. "My name is Lily, and I am here to help the girls just as you are. I am almost finished with breakfast. You will join us for this morning, won't you?"

"Ah, I see. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance. My name is Thane Wilson." Hearing her proposal about breakfast, he nodded. "That sounds wonderful. Thank you, Lily." Thane entered the house, removing his helm and weapons to put off to the side. He sounded a little worried as he made it over to the dinning table. "How have things been around here? Those serpent demons haven't been trying anything, have they?"

Heading back over to the oven, Lily pulled the pot from where it was thinking that the eggs were well cooked by now. "No, everything has been just fine." She creased her brow in worry at his tone, however. "But what about you, Thane? You sound a bit startled by something. Is everything alright?" Lily put the pancakes and bread on separate dishes before bringing them over to the table Thane was sitting at.

Thane knew that Lily was blind given her eyes' glossy look. He couldn't help but offer a slight smile at her ability to sense things so easily with her ears. "Not much gets by you, I see. You must have been blind since birth to have such great second sight."

Lily nodded her head once at Thane as if to bow when she tilted her head downwards with a smile. "So I have been told."

The knight took the iron gloves off of his hands, showing off the rather reddened mark on his wrist made by Jin's tail squeezing the area so hard. "Anyways, one of the serpent demons snuck into Kalrune last night. He tried to steal and kill some of the chickens, but I managed to catch him before he did any heavy damage to the livestock. I thought for sure Kale and I would be able to kill him, but another serpent demon came from behind…and he did the strangest thing." Thane paused for a moment as he thought back on the roots reaching up from the group to entangle him and Kale, entrapping them both. "It was strange, Lily! It was as if this demon had control over the earth! Roots from underground obeyed his command in capturing Kale and I! I never in my life thought demons could do such a thing, let alone a serpent demon!"

Hearing of the snake demon that attacked Thane, Lily widened her blank eyes. _Jin…! _She panicked realizing that he ran into Thane of all knights there. Hearing of the unique ability one of them had made Lily act a little interested as she was unaware any of the demons had such abilities given the fact Jin and Touya never showered her or told her they had powers of the earth. "Well, I guess that means that they might be evolving."

"That's bad news!" Thane panicked as his fists met with the table. "They are trouble as is without some of them having such powers. What are we going to do when they all start having such abilities?"

"Thane," Lily began with a soft tone, "please, serpent demons only attack whenever they are hungry or their nest is assaulted. The only reason that one demon attacked the chickens was because he was hungry no doubt. He didn't mean any harm to you or your friend." She tilted her head to the side. "Did either of the demons attack and or injure you any?"

He found it a bit odd that Lily was willing to defend such beasts, but Thane said nothing about it at the moment, shrugging at her question. "Well…no, not really. The one trying to eat the chickens just grabbed onto my wrist with his tail and forced me to drop my sword. I was expecting him to attack me by suffocating me or something along those lines."

"And what of the other?" Lily wondered as he was hinting that there were two.

"The other one used the roots of the earth to just bind us for awhile." Thane realized what she was getting at and sighed irritably at how correct she was. "Okay, so they didn't attack us. They just wanted the chickens, but we need those birds ourselves!"

Lily sucked in her lower lip, shifting her eyes downwards at the table she could feel beneath her hands. "Thane, demons are primitive creatures at best. They cannot cook and the Goddess didn't bless us with an understanding nature to the point we would allow them to come in and trade with us for such food. If we were as such, I am sure stuff like this wouldn't happen as often."

The knight was confused as he shook his head at Lily. "Where do you find most of this stuff? Are you a rare demon lover?"

The blind Lily sighed, looking off at nothing in particular before moving towards the stairs. "My father studied these demons when he was alive. They are not here to cause problems for humans." Her hand met with the wooden staircase railing. She bowed her head a bit before gazing over at where Thane was possibly sitting. "I just wish some people could see that."

Thane didn't say anything to that as Lily took her leave of the dinning room to fetch the girls for breakfast. Being a knight who slew such beasts for entering into the village boundaries regardless of why, he couldn't wrap his mind around what Lily had to say to him. Thane merely shrugged, rolling his eyes a bit as he pulled a few pancakes onto his plate.

"Blythe, Neda?" Lily called as she made it to the top of the staircase. She didn't bother moving much further than that seeing as she still didn't know her way around the upper part of the house yet. "It is time for breakfast."

Hearing the call, Blythe soon made her way out of the bedroom to enter into the upper, curved hallway. She was out of her pajamas and looking rather nice in her white dress with black trim at the bottom of her skirt. "We will be there soon, Lily. Let me try to get Neda out of bed now. She fell back asleep for the moment."

Lily nodded. "Please, see that you do. We cannot have her starving today." Turning around, she grabbed back onto the railing to help herself steadily down the steps back to the living and dinning room.

Blythe went back into the bedroom, leaving the door opened as she made it to Neda's bedside. "Neda, it is time to eat," she relayed to her sleeping sister. Neda tried to push Blythe away with an irritable moan. Moving out of the way of her younger sister's tiny arm, she continued to shake Neda. "Please, you must eat something today."

"Go away," Neda mumbled against the covers of her bed.

A sigh escaped from Blythe's lips. "If you eat something, I will stop bothering you." She had gotten tired of seeing Neda day by day refusing to eat only to have her sleep more and more to the point her small frame got even smaller.

With that being said, Neda threw the covers off of her body. "Fine, whatever it takes to make you leave me alone." She was getting fed up with everybody pressuring her to eat lately and to stay awake. Neda had little desire to do anything. She just wanted to sleep her life away. Her bare feet hitting the floorboards, Neda made it out of their bedroom and down the staircase in her pajamas to find Thane apparently joining them for the morning. "Oh, I see Thane's here…"

Thane could hear how unenthusiastic she was about his presence. He could only offer her a smile for a greeting. "I am sorry that I bother you so much, Neda. You know I do not mean to."

Neda slightly rolled her eyes as she made it to the bottom of the stairs. Her bare foot hitting the last step stepped upon something rather fine feeling causing her to jerk her foot back quickly wondering what was there. Her eyes caught sight of a red scale there upon the stair step. "Hey, it is another one of those things." It was the first time she had ever sounded so cheery before. Neda reached down to pluck the scale from where it was glistening in the sunlight to gaze at it closer.

Lily turned around to face where she could hear Neda's voice wondering what got her so happy all of a sudden. "What is it you have there? What have you found?" The blind woman made her way over to Neda to outstretch her hand for the item. "Mind if I feel of it?"

Neda reluctantly handed over the scale to Lily. "I have found several more around the farm. I planned on making a necklace out of them, because they look pretty." She watched as Lily ran her finger over the front and back of the item in interest. "I haven't gone into the market place though to find what I need to string them together."

She recognized the dry texture of it and could only smile a bit to herself. "Tell me, what color is it?"

"It is red," Neda answered as she heard Blythe making her way down the steps behind her.

Lily knew who it might belong to as she handed it over to Neda once more. "Red—I will have to remember that." She could hear Blythe had managed to make it down the steps as well. Turning around, she picked up her dress a bit out of her way. "Let's eat breakfast for now. Blythe, maybe afterwards you can take your sister into the market for me to get a few things." Lily made it to her seat at the dinning room table to eat as well. "Forgiving me for asking this of you both, but I just came back from there, and I am too tired to go back being up all night. I would ask Thane, but being on the night watch, I am sure he could use some sleep as well."

Blythe sat down in between Thane and Neda, catching the nod from the young knight as he was going to be ready for sleep once he finished eating his breakfast. "No, no, that is not a problem." She opened her napkin and placed it in her lap. "Please, it is the least I can do for all you both have done for Neda and me."

"By the way, the carpenters should have your barn finished in two weeks," Thane said as he moved his eggs around before scooping some up on his fork. "By then your animals can have their bed space back."

"That is wonderful," Blythe praised as she looked at the young knight. She didn't realize she was practically admiring him with her eyes until Blythe caught Thane looking at her inquisitively. Snapping quickly out of her trance, she looked down at her plate to start picking at her pancakes. "Umm, I cannot thank you enough for what you've done."

Thane smiled down at Blythe. "Do not worry about it for now, Blythe," he said softly. "I am sure later on when everything is back to normal, I can think of a way to have you repay me."

Neda was left clueless in the entire conversation but not Lily. She could hint what was being said between the two making her smile during the chewing of her food. "It is wonderful you've done so much for them, Thane. You are an extraordinary knight." Her glass chimed a bit as she took a sip from it. "I have no doubt things will be just fine with you here." Lily brought her napkin to her lips to wipe them before pulling from the table. "You usually take the sofa, right, Thane?" She heard the knight release a confused hum at her question. "You know, when you sleep here?"

"Oh, yes, I usually do, but if you want to take it, that is fine by me," Thane insisted, running his fingers through his blond hair. "I can sleep in one of the chairs."

Blythe brought the side of her finger to her lips to think on where Thane could sleep comfortably. She knew Neda wasn't going to take kindly to it, but Thane had been so gracious to them and it was the least she could offer. "Well, why don't you take our parent's bedroom for the time being?"

"Blythe!" Neda exclaimed, dropping her fork from the shock of hearing her say such a thing.

Regardless of her sister's outburst, she continued. "I am sure with you helping us so much and for free, our parents wouldn't mind at all if you did." Blythe looked over at Neda finally with a raise of her brow to show that she wanted her younger sister to put into consideration what she just said. "Please, Neda," she whispered between the two of them. "It is an empty room that either one of them could use. We'd be lost without them."

Neda was silent as was everyone else at that moment. Thane managed to find his voice as he too finished with his meal, pulling from the table. "Thank you so much, Blythe, but I am sure if anybody should take the bed, Lily should."

Lily washed the dishes in her possession at the sink. Thinking about Thane taking the sofa worried her a bit as Jin could only get her attention on the bottom floor. "That is very kind of you, Thane, but please, you take the bed. The sofa isn't so bad," she assured everyone.

Thane found it a bit odd that she was willing to sleep on the sofa on the bottom floor instead of taking the bed upstairs, but he allowed her to do it. "Alright, if that is okay with you then." He offered his dishes to Lily before stretching in his heavy armor with a yawn. "I am going to go ahead and go to bed for the morning. If you need me, let me know."

She felt the dirty plates next to her while moving her fingers about the counter top. "Sleep well, Thane." Taking the dishcloth and wiping the dishes clean, Lily turned slightly to look over at the table best she could. "When you're finished, give me your plates. I will clean them up and go to sleep myself."

Blythe and Neda both nodded to themselves. "Yes, Lily," said the older sister on both their behalf.

Touya leaned against one of the towering trees scattered about the woodlands behind Kalrune back at the cemetery nesting site. He tapped the tip of his serpent tail back and forth upon the cold ground. "Quite the predicament you're in now, Jin." He watched as the wind serpent paced back and forth before him. "If Beldon doesn't consider Dustin as one of them and allow him to keep his alpha title, what will you do then?"

Jin grabbed onto his wild red hair, shaking his head with a groan. "I don't know…I don't want to leave behind Dustin and you, but I can't leave behind Silver either given she is holding eggs inside of her now." He looked up through the forest canopy to watch the sun gradually peak through to the darkened land below. "Silver is probably still waiting for me to return. I better go to her."

"I guess I'll go hang out with Dustin for now," Touya sighed as he was seeing less of his friend lately. "He doesn't want me near the ice nest. The alpha wants to fight with me anyways for the title every time I pass by. I have no interest in caring for my own nest."

The wind demon chuckled a bit. "That is probably because of your ice powers. You should offer it up to a female of their nest to just get your ice powers to them. That is all Beldon really wants from me."

Touya scrunched up his nose while bringing up his tail to use it to cup his chin. "Don't you feel used in that aspect?"

Jin looked over his shoulder at Touya with a sly smile. "You don't feel so used when ladies want to have your children. I am sure once Silver has her babies, I will be asked to spread that around." The crimson scales flexed a bit as Jin stretched. "I am tired. I've been up all night."

"Sleep well then, Jin." Touya slithered over towards Jin with his arms out to embrace the wind demon gently. He rested his nose against his friend's chest, closing his eyes a moment to take in his scent. "Just choose wisely. We've been together for so long. I don't want you to leave."

The muscular arms of Jin made their way around Touya to embrace him in return. "Careful, Touya," he chuckled. "If anybody catches you the ladies might assume we're together."

Touya's face broke into quick irritation causing him to punch Jin on his injured side when he pulled back from the embrace. He heard Jin let out a long, painful moan upon him doing so. "You were asking for it, you idiot! Apparently you still have your mind on sex! Let me know when you've finally focused on something else." With that said, Touya headed back to the temporary nesting area Dustin had for the moment.

"Well, he sure can punch for one so small," Jin said to himself breathlessly, holding onto his side. He made his way back to the shack, opening up the door to find Silver waiting nervously upon the musty bed covers. "I am sorry I left like that, Silver."

Silver uncoiled her body and hurried back over to Jin to hold onto him tightly, closing her eyes as she nuzzled into his chest. "Things have gotten so crazy suddenly," she whimpered. "You seem so stressed and tired. I am worried about you." Silver reached up to touch his cheek, caressing it eagerly.

Jin took Silver's hand, holding it tightly to kiss. He helped her open her hand to start kissing each finger to taste of her flesh. "I promise I will be okay, Silver. I've been up all night, and I am exhausted from it." Leaning forwards, he kissed her pallid cheek. "Do you need anymore food to sate you before I sleep?"

The female serpent demon held onto Jin gently, resting her scaly cheek upon his chest. "No, I am fine. I just want to be next to you for awhile." Silver headed over to the bed with Jin at her side. "I just really wish I knew what was wrong with you."

The bed creaked as both serpent demons made their way on top of it. Jin's crimson scales moved slowly on top of the covers before wrapping about Silver's tail in a warm, loving embrace. "I wish I could tell you, Silver, but…I don't know." He didn't want to tell her that he didn't trust her. Jin did realize, however, that Silver was getting quite worried every time he took off without a word. "If I tell you, will you promise me you won't tell a single soul about this? If you do, I might get thrown out of this nest and either killed or sent into exile."

From the sound of his voice, Silver could tell he was serious and worried about sharing what it was he was about to say. "What-what is it?"

Jin grunted as he shifted slightly, bringing Silver closer to his chest. "My old nest and I were looking for another place to live, because the last place we lived at got burned down by a fire I accidentally caused. Anyways, during the fire, I tried to pull the human mother and father out in time, but I was unable to. The fire killed them both." His eyes shifted back and forth as he was forced to think back on that night. "I had the mother die in my arms, and she made me promise that I would watch over their two little girls. I have been running back to that farm to try and do so with a blind human who knows that I am a serpent demon and is fine with that fact."

"Bless the serpent Lord…!" Silver exclaimed almost breathlessly, placing her hand upon her heart. "You've been watching over two young bipedal kits?" None of the serpent demons were sure what the human children were called. Some assumed they heard the word 'kits' some times when referred to them. "I cannot believe they haven't tried to kill you…!"

"I think they are called 'kids' just as we call ours, but you were close." Jin too was a bit surprised he hadn't been spotted and skinned on the spot. "Well, I only go at night to check on them. The blind woman is watching over them for me, but I try to help when I can." He felt so bad at that moment. Jin rested his chin upon Silver's hair. "I am sorry to have my attention split like this. I didn't expect everything to come falling down on top of me."

Silver closed her eyes, feeling his chin upon her head. "Everything will get better, Jin," she assured her current mate. "It just has to."

Jin held Silver a bit closer, rubbing her back with a tender smile. "I know it will, love. I know it will." The wind serpent closed his eyes as he was unable to stay awake much longer. Silver wasn't too keen on sleeping as she had during the night, but regardless, she stayed close to Jin to make sure he would get the sleep he desired.

Back at the Cormac Farm, Neda headed upstairs wearily with the red scale in her hand. She made her way to her messy bed and sat down upon the covers to examine the scale a bit closer, still baffled as to what it could be. Neda placed it on the nightstand before rolling back into bed even though she found it difficult to do so with her monthly issue irritating her stomach.

Blythe finished the bread she was given for breakfast while making it up the stairs to head around the corner to join Neda as well. She pushed the cracked door open further to see Neda was content to go right back to bed again making her sigh inwardly. Closing the door quietly behind her, she put the list down on the nightstand that consisted of items she wrote down that Lily wanted from the market. "So, why don't you get ready, Neda, so we can head down to the market place?"

"You go," Neda mumbled against her pillow. "I don't want to. I am tired."

"You're always tired, Neda," Blythe sighed, moving the covers off of her sister. "All we have to do is go down to the market. Keep in mind, some of these items are for your…female problems."

Neda sat upright in bed. "Lily told you about that?" She was embarrassed. Her face was starting to blush over from the thought of Lily sharing the news with anybody.

"Neda, it is nothing to be ashamed of. With your birthday tomorrow, it was to be expected by…mom…." Blythe paused a moment when she remembered her mother telling her this, what seemed like just yesterday. Pearl was giddy about it as her second daughter would be the next to become a woman. She seemed so happy when talking to Blythe about it. Their mother wanted to break the news to Neda, but was unable to before her untimely death. The room at that moment went silent, making Blythe a bit uncomfortable considering Neda's condition. "Anyways, why don't you get dressed and come with me?"

"You're not going to let me sleep, are you?" Neda griped slightly.

"No, because you've slept enough." Blythe pulled the covers off of her younger sister. "Now come. You are wasting time just lying there bleeding everywhere when we could be taking care of that problem."

Neda brought her legs over the side of the bed, sighing heavily in irritation at being forced to move from the one spot she found the most relaxation lately. She caught sight of the shimmering, red scale on her nightstand thinking about the necklace she had planned on making anyways. Neda pulled the rest from her nightstand drawer to place within her small, brown pouch she often kept around her waist whenever out of the house.

The same nightmare plagued Jin's mind as he slept throughout the morning and into the afternoon. The fires of destructive raging through his mind caused him to sweat and start trembling against Silver's body. The vibrations caused the serpent female to look up at the pain-stricken wind demon with worry. "Jin?" She called softly, shaking him awake best she could. "Jin, wake up."

Jin seemed to just get worse off the more Silver tried to call to him. He could hear Silver clearly, but her cries just blended in with the screaming he could hear from the serpent female he took as a mate in the raging fires. Not able to take the sight plaguing his mind, Jin's eyes flew open finally while he emitted a hasty breath. "S-Silver…!" He exclaimed breathlessly realizing she was okay. "I am-I am so sorry." Jin placed his hand to his face, hiding his embarrassment in being caught in such a way.

Silver reached up to touch Jin's hand upon his features only to withdraw her hand back a few times not sure if she should given how startled he seemed. "Jin, are you okay?" She asked softly, tenderly gripping onto his wrist at last to pull his hand away. "Oh my, you're burning up!"

"No, no, I am fine," he insisted with a wave of his hand. "I am just startled. I will calm back down in a moment."

"Do you need something to drink?" Silver asked. She could see the sweat still glistening on the serpent demon. "Bless you, Jin; you're dripping in sweat…! What happened?"

Jin could see she was worried. He placed his hand on her slightly swollen stomach to remind her of the eggs she was forming inside of her body. "I am sorry, Silver. It was just a nightmare." He scratched the back of his head with a hum in thought. "It was so vivid though, so I got really scared." Jin could see Silver was eager to hear what it was about, but he didn't want to frighten her any further. "It isn't important." Looking over his shoulder, he saw that the sun was setting. "I better head back to the farm." Pushing himself up off of the musty bed, Jin flinched as his bruised rib bone wasn't healed yet, and he was overdoing it lately with traveling back and forth.

Silver heard the painful hiss the wind serpent emitted making her grab tightly onto his upper arms. "Jin, you can't go!"

"Silver, please…!"

"No!" Silver demanded this time, digging her nails into his arms in attempts to tranquilize him.

Female serpent demons' venom was always weaker than males. Jin could tell what she was trying to do. He looked down at her angrily as he knew it wasn't within the female's position to say what the male could and couldn't do. Jin grabbed onto her hands to pull them from his body. "Silver, stop it! You should know better!" He scolded.

She closed her eyes tightly knowing she was in trouble for her outburst. "I am sorry, but I don't want you to get hurt! Please," she begged near tears, holding onto his shoulders tightly to bury her face into his chest. "You are injured, Jin. Can't you ask somebody to go to those girls on your behalf?"

"The only other demon I can ask is Touya, and he isn't going to go there by himself." Jin knew Touya was capable of handling himself, but he had to admit that he didn't like the thought of him going up there alone. Pearl wanted _**him**_ to watch over her daughters. "Silver, I am sorry about this. I truly am, but I have to help Lily with something I was asked to do."

Not sure what to say, Silver was silent for a moment before thinking of a solution. "Fine then, I am coming with you."

"Silver!"

"Please, Jin, I want to come with you!" She begged, furrowing her brow in sadness at the thought of him declining this offer. "I hardly see you, and you're supposed to be the father of my babies." Silver held onto Jin not wishing to let him go. "You promised you'd help me through this. You promised me that…"

Jin sighed as he gently gripped onto Silver's shoulders. "Alright, fine, but you have to promise me you'll do as I say without question, okay?" He could tell that the young demon was nervous about stepping foot outside of the nest's boundaries once more. "I will protect you, Silver. Now, let's get going."

Silver slid down from the bed they were upon carefully, following behind Jin as he escorted her out of the shack and into the woodlands to make it past the nests belonging to the giant serpent clan in the Kalrune graveyard and towards the Cormac Farm.

With Lily having slept most of the day, she found herself wide awake throughout most of the night waiting for Jin to stop by again in case he decided to do so. She was running her fingers over the special bump, coded writing her father managed to put together for Lily when growing up dealing with his documents on the wolf and serpent demons. Her fingers slid over each carefully placed bump to make out the words. As she did so, a subtle knock came upon the window within the kitchen area. Lily turned her head slightly before getting to her feet, placing the book down on the table before the sofa she was upon. Making it to the window, she searched for the lock to unlatch it to open it. "Jin, is that you?" She asked.

Jin's ears moved forwards slightly at his name being called by Lily. He was slightly hid in the bushes incase it wasn't she who answered. "Lily, is everything clear?" Jin asked still remaining slightly hidden in the brush from the neck down. Seeing her nod, he looked over his shoulder at Silver who didn't want to come any closer than the woodlands surrounding half of the farm land. He motioned for her to come on over.

Lily could hear him murmuring something in demonic under his breath. "Is somebody with you?"

"Eh, yes, the woman I am taking care of." Jin looked back over to see Silver was still hesitant to make it over. "Silver," he said in demonic, "it is okay. Come over here."

Silver started to inch forwards, looking to the left and right cautiously before making her way over towards Jin. She could tell the human woman was blind, but it didn't ease her fear of being so close to a human being. Staying close to the ground, Silver watched Lily closely.

"She is a little shy," Jin explained as he took Lily's hand to guide it towards Silver. He helped Lily touch the foreign serpent demon's cheek. Lily touched Silver's face tenderly, feeling the placement of her scales to guess the age of her mentally. "Can we come on in?"

"Sure, come on in. It is safe," Lily assured them as she stepped aside, allowing them to slide over the windowsill inside of the house.

Jin could see that Silver was hesitant to even move inside of the building upon making his way to the kitchen. He watched as she peeked inside of the house to smell of the foreign and familiar odors that made her jerk her head back out the window. "She smells the knight," he announced to Lily, making his way over to her to speak in demonic once more as that was her primary language. "Silver, it is okay. The knight is on guard duty back at the human village. He won't hurt you." When he saw her threatening to buckle, he tilted her chin upwards with his finger. "You know I wouldn't lead you to harm."

"Does she not know any English words?" Lily asked Jin with a tilt of her head.

"Eh, some serpent demons know English and some know only a few words. Silver's nest doesn't know that many," Jin explained. "How is everything here? Are the girls doing okay?"

"First of all, answer me this one question: what color are your scales, Jin?" Lily wondered almost randomly. She wanted to make sure that the scale Neda picked up was his and not somebody else's.

Jin found the question to be out of left field, but he answered anyways. "My main scales are red while my underbelly is pinkish in color. Why do you ask?"

Lily smiled. "Some of your scales are coming off. Neda has found a few, and she is making a necklace out of them. You must be getting close to shedding your skin soon." Thinking about the other serpent demon in the room who was pregnant, she stared off past the two as she wasn't sure where they were standing at the moment. "Does your friend need anything to eat? I have some eggs she can have."

"Silver," Jin began once more in demonic, "do you want something to eat?"

Silver fidgeted nervously looking between the two. "That would be nice."

"She is hungry, Lily," Jin answered with a nod. He watched as the woman headed for the cabinets to pull out some of the eggs she was keeping for the redhead serpent demon in case he wanted any. He could tell Silver was still frightened given her position. "It is okay. Lily isn't going to hurt you at all."

Silver was finding it hard to relax as she made her way closer to Jin's side. "Umm, how is it you know how to speak in their tongue?"

"My nests have always been around farmlands or human villages," he explained. "Thanks to living around the humans for so many years, I picked up on their language. Also, Dustin knew the language long before myself, and he taught me some of it in order for me to protect myself."

"We were never allowed to learn their tongue," Silver admitted, rubbing her upper arm. "We only pick up on some of their words, but even when we do, we're not allowed to use them."

Lily got the eggs together. Bending down a bit with them all in a basket, she offered them to the two. "Here you go, sweetie. Go ahead and take them."

Silver pushed herself up on her serpent half slightly to look at the eggs presented to her. She rolled her forked tongue forward to make sure nothing was abnormal about them before accepting the basket from Lily. She made haste over to one of the furniture items to coil up there to eat what she was given.

"Jin, there is something I need to ask of you." Lily rested against the dinning room table with her hand upon her chest. "Tomorrow is Neda's birthday, and it would be wonderful if you could help me."

"But-Lily…! I don't know anything about…what is a birthday?" Jin wondered with a tilt of his head.

"A birthday is a celebration of one's birth," she explained, tapping her fingers against the wooden top of the table. "It is usually celebrated with gifts and cake. Neda's will be tomorrow, and I need your help to put together something seeing as Thane is back at Kalrune Village."

Jin tapped his chin in thought. "Hmm, I guess I can try to do something for her. But I thought at this time, most of the places in your human market are closed."

"They usually are," Lily sighed remembering that little fact. "However there are some that stay up only at night till 6:00 AM. Shall we go to the market and find something for her?"


	18. Chapter 18

_**Author's Notes**_: Sorry for not getting on this sooner or any writing for that matter. The last few weeks have been **TOUGH**; especially when it came to work, and I have been playing WOW to get ready for expansion, but now I find myself in that mood to sit back and relax from it, or I may end up throwing it out the window.

Also, regarding a criticism about this story, this story is not dead-set on Middle Ages. It is an alternate reality, thus why Jin and Touya have Japanese names in a place that resembles a Middle Aged area (don't you think that odd too, lol). It is fiction, not to be 100 factual, and as much as I'd love to look up and use old English for this story, I am sure some people would find their heads spinning, so I am going to use normal terminology if I can and if I find it to be somewhat appropriate. -wink- I am not sure if I used the words 'jeans' though as I have referred to women mostly and women at this time don't wear pants but dresses. lol If I did, that was an oops on my part. **I am sure another item I am about to list in this one wasn't invented until many centuries later, but I am introducing it anyways**.

Anyways, enjoy.

--

Jin's red scales rubbed across one another as he cupped his chin there within the tip of his tail, his arms crossed upon his chest. "What is it I am supposed to get her? I don't know anything about human needs. You forget that we are two totally different species."

Lily shifted slightly upon her feet with a soft smile. Her hand upon her hip, she shook her head while asking, "What would you give a loved one if it was their…_hatch_ day?"

"Hatch day?" Jin tilted his head still not familiar with the term. "You mean when somebody is hatched?" The wind serpent paused for a moment before it clicked. "Oh, so when a human is born it is equal to a serpent demon being hatched…_**if**_ they are even born with the shell." It was a known fact that some serpent demons that were born were sometimes born without the encasing of an egg. "I am afraid we don't really celebrate ones' birth though. It is an interesting celebration you humans have."

A chuckle escaped Lily's mouth as she leaned against the dinning room table she could feel behind her. "Well, it is a very special celebration for the person born. We do this in a sort of way to let that person know we appreciate their presence here on this earth." Lily shrugged. "Do you know if anything happened when you were born or when you were born?"

Jin looked upwards at the ceiling with his mouth twisted to the side in thought. His eyes darted back and forth to try and remember his birth. "Mmm, it was very warm outside and quite rainy a bit. I was also the only one in my clutch to be born without the shell. My mom found that to be bizarre."

"Sounds like the spring time," said Lily as she moved back and forth a bit upon her feet. "I often wonder, seeing as you were born without the shell, how big are you?" Walking over towards the serpent demon, she ran her fingers down his chest and to his serpent half. "You are quite wide up front—." Lily moved her hands further down to feel of his scales still. "—and well into the middle. A measuring tape…umm, can you look for a measuring instrument for me, Jin? It is a thin piece of fabric, which stretches out quite far, with a few lines on it."

The serpent demon looked about the room inquisitively. "Where would it be?" His scales rubbed against one another as he started to move about the connected rooms.

"If there is one in this house, it might be in the living room somewhere if the mother knitted." She could hear the demon searching through the items in the room just across from the kitchen. "Try looking for a basket with yarn inside of it. It might be in there."

Jin dug through the basket Pearl kept her sewing supplies within, eventually coming across the measuring tape Lily was referring to. "Is this it? It is yellow in color and has these weird black lines on it." He handed it over towards the blind woman to have her feel of it.

Running her fingers over the cloth material, Lily nodded. "Yes, yes, this is it." She lined it up to where Jin's scales began. "Seeing as this isn't the special ruler my father made me, I will have to make do with just measuring you length wise." Lily could tell he was still slightly coiled up when feeling of his muscles. "Could you outstretch yourself, please?"

"If you say so." Jin moved his body to the point it was uncoiled. He lied down, resting his chin upon his overlapped arms. "I don't see why my size is important anyways."

"Because I have a feeling you are much larger than I think you are." It took a good while for Lily to measure Jin's length. She found herself stopping in disbelief after a moment finding him to be bigger than any serpent demon her father ever documented. "Jin…you are nearly over 60 feet!"

He was unimpressed from the look of it as he started to coil his body back to where it was. "Is that a bad thing?" Jin's blue eyes gazed at Lily from where he was resting near the foot of the staircase.

"It isn't a bad thing it is just surprising!" Lily exclaimed, nearly startling Silver who was still in the room, hiding from the awful smell of iron. Hearing the startled hiss from the female serpent, she apologized. "No serpent demon my father documented was ever considered to be that long! He never saw one that big before! And for one so young…I can only wonder if you'll get bigger!"

Jin chuckled briefly within his arms before getting up to stretch a bit. "Well, I am glad I could surprise you." He curled his body back up slowly causing the boards beneath him to creek as he did so. "To answer your previous question, serpent demons don't really celebrate any such hatch day or birthday. But to express love for another, flowers or other items of value are sometimes given that humans leave lying around."

"I'll tell you what, we will go into town and I'll let you pick out something you think she may like," suggested Lily as she reached out for Jin's hand.

The wind demon accepted her hand, looking over at Silver. "What about Silver? I cannot leave her here alone." He gazed up the darkened staircase with a soft sigh. "What if one of the girls wakes up and come down here? I am sure even young humans don't hesitate to try and kill demons."

She tapped her fingers upon the dinning room table, rolling her teeth over her lower lip. "And I can't ask her to stay outside. Knights are known to walk about this area a good bit now since the fire." Lily shifted her blank eyes about the home before recalling something. "The girls' parent's bedroom—they never go into that room anymore from what I've heard. It is used by the knight, but he won't be here until sunrise, and we'll be back by then."

"I don't know. She can still smell the knight's armor." Jin made his way over to Silver, who finished off the last egg she had been pushing around with her nose before swallowing it whole. "Silver, we're going to the human's market," said Jin in demonic. "We want you to stay here, but up in one of the bedrooms that the knight uses."

Silver recoiled up a bit, hissing a bit at the thought. "The bed where the man in iron sleeps? The place will smell of him!" She curled her serpent body about the chair she was nestled near, trying to hide about it. "I can smell him ever down here. That scent makes me so nervous…don't leave me in here alone!"

"Silver," Jin sighed in sympathy. He lowered his body closer to the floor to look in her eyes. "I can take you back home if you wish. I knew you coming here was a bad idea."

The young serpent demon shook her head at his desire to take her back to the nest. "No, I can come with you! I wanted to come with you, because I was worried about your injury. If you go back to the nest with me, your pain might get that much worse. You shouldn't even be slithering your way to the human town as it is." Silver reached up to place her hands upon Jin's cheeks prompting Jin to reach for her wrists and gently pry them from where they were.

"If you think the smell of the iron is bad here, Silver, wait till you go there," Jin explained from experience. "They are everywhere; especially at night. The scent of that awful metal they wear has made me cringe and hiss." He could tell that Silver was torn in what to do. Jin sighed, reaching for her face with his hand to pull her attention back to him once she dared look away from him. "Just stay here for me in that bedroom. We will be back soon enough; I promise."

Lily could tell something was going on between the two even if she didn't understand demonic. "What is the matter, Jin? Is something wrong?" She could hear slight hissing from one of the two, making her worried what could have possibly upset them.

Jin wiggled his ears upon hearing Lily's question. "She doesn't want to go into the room because she can smell the knight, and she knows it will be worse up there. Silver wanted to come with me no thanks to the injury I got from one of those knights. She was worried about me."

"What if we burned candles in the room?" Picking up the hem of her dress, Lily made her way over towards the cabinet that held the candles, some of which were scented. "We can light these and the smell will just wash out the iron smell."

The thought of Silver being around fire made Jin panic. "**NO**!" He yelled thinking of the barn fire deaths and the nightmare he had been having. When he saw Lily look at him oddly, Jin realized he raised his voice a bit too high. He looked away, clearing his throat. "I mean, no. I would rather you not light anything in a room with her. Serpent demons don't do well with fire anyways."

"Well, we don't necessarily have to burn them. We can just put them in the room, and even the smell of the candles may calm her." Lily made her way over towards the redheaded demon to show them to him. "Here, take a smell of them. You'll see that even not lit, they smell quite nice."

Jin took the candle, smelling of it with a slip of his tongue. "Mm, it smells like the woods."

"It is supposed to smell of flowers," Lily pointed out. "There must be quite a few out there in the wild where you used to live for you to point that out." She handed it over to the serpent demon before nodding. "Give it to Silver and see if she would like that."

Taking the candle from Lily, he handed it over to the confused Silver. "Smell it," Jin insisted in demonic. "It may settle your nerves." He waited for her to take a sample of it with a flick of her tongue. "So, what do you think?"

"What is this?" Silver wondered. "It smells like the plants the two-leggers used to bring to the nesting site we are at." She grabbed onto the candle with both hands to look it over with interest. "This isn't those plants, but it smells like one."

Jin merely chuckled, shrugging his shoulders back. "Humans are interesting creatures. So if we put these in that room, would it calm you a bit?" He saw Silver was hesitant to consider it at first, but she knew there was no other option for her, so she nodded. "Alright," Jin said in the human tongue as he turned to Lily, "she is willing to try that. How many do you have? I doubt one is going to do the trick."

"There should be more around here," Lily thought aloud as she made it back over to the cabinet. "Most of these are just regular candles they use for night. Only some people have candles that are scented. They are very hard to make and so they are very expensive." She checked each candle in the cabinet to separate the scented ones from the regular. Lily was able to find four at least. "Alright, these are them. If you put them about the room, it should drown out the iron smell Thane tracks in here." Her blank eyes drifted off toward nothing in particular though she was trying to find where the door might be located. "You might want to hurry, however. Unless we want to walk there, we have to be out there on the road to catch our possible next ride into town from the young lady we road with last time."

The redheaded serpent demon turned to Silver with a nod. "Alright, let's get you up into the bedroom. It is this way." Moving across the floor carefully, Jin headed up the darkened staircase slowly to make sure Silver was behind him. At the top of the stairs, he curled his body closely to himself to allow his mate a way through. "Don't back away, okay? Nothing is in there that is going to hurt you." He watched as she stayed close to his body while rubbing her hands slightly out of nervousness. Jin couldn't deny that even the iron smell was irritating him as well upon reaching for the doorknob of the deceased parent's bedchambers to open it. He flinched from the iron stench, causing him to let out a slight hiss next to Silver. "It is alright; it is okay!" He assured her quietly as well as himself. "His smell just lingers."

Silver remained cowered beside her mate, wanting him to take care of whatever was inside of the room. "I cannot go in there…it smells too much of him…!" She was about to panic, forcing Jin to grab onto her tightly to keep her from running or causing more of a ruckus considering the fact the girls were still asleep not too far away.

"Shhh, shhh," Jin whispered within her pointed ear, kissing the side of her head. "The man in iron isn't in there. I promise you. He won't be back till much later, okay?" It took a good bit of soothing, but Jin was able to escort Silver slowly inside of the bedroom consisting of two beds, two windows on the right side of the room, a closet, and a wooden vanity. In the darkness, they could see that there was nobody inside of the room. The smell of the knight iron was just slightly thick for the moment. "See, there is nothing here."

For awhile, Silver remained next to her mate before finding the courage to part from him to look at some of the items littering the human room. She had never been so close to such things before. Her scaly body glided upon the floor as she made it over to the nice vanity made of pine. There were some pre-used candles lining the flat surface as well as a used brush with only a few visible hairs belonging to Pearl. A small jewelry box was off to the side catching her attention with how shiny the wood was. Reaching for it, Silver hesitantly opened it to find a bunch of earrings, necklaces, and the like. "These are very pretty."

Jin wasn't sure what the items were himself as he got closer. "I don't know what that is. I think I've seen humans wear some of that." He placed some of the candles about the room, hoping to fan out the smell of the knight. Slithering over towards the windows, he tilted his head slightly in wonder at how it worked. "I've seen Lily open this before, but I don't know how…" Remembering the motion of her grabbing something and pushing it up, he slipped his fingers under the indentions within the woodwork to pull upwards with all his might. The window was slowly opened, allowing more of the air from outside to come inside to overpower the iron scent. "How is that? Is that good for you too?"

"Thank you, I am sure that will help," Silver said with a brief smile. She was still slightly on edge.

Sighing softly, Jin made his way to the shivering Silver. "I will be right back, my love." With Silver looking down at the floor in dismay, he tilted her chin back up with the side of his finger. "I promise. I am sorry you had to get caught up in this situation, but I made a promise to Pearl…I made a promise to a lot of people, and I am trying to keep all of them."

Silver managed a smile at the redhead, turning her head to the side slightly to allow some of her silver hairs to rest against her right cheek as she gazed up at him. "It is alright, Jin. I know it isn't your fault." She held onto his hand tightly for a moment, keeping it close to her chest. "I will be okay. You go ahead into the human town, and I will be here for you."

Leaning forwards, Jin kissed her upon her forehead. "I will return, Silver." Thinking about the nightmares he had been having, he sighed heavily with worry. "Just…stay here, don't open that door, and be careful, okay?"

The female serpent found his worrying behavior slightly odd. "O-Okay." Silver reached out for the wind demon to embrace him tightly, looking off at nothing in particular as she could only wonder what was causing him such obvious anxiety. Resting her nose against his chest, she kissed the tough, demonic skin tenderly. "Be careful yourself, love."

Jin pulled from Silver's arms shortly after to make his way back towards the cracked door. He held onto her hand for awhile until finally parting from her side. His serpent body coiled beyond the bedroom, he shut the door quietly. The floorboards at the bottom of the steps creaked slightly, catching the serpent's attention quickly with a low hiss at the surprise.

"Jin, are you finished? We need to hurry now," Lily spoke softly from the bottom of the staircase. She had the blankets in her arms to cover up his entire body. "When I am there, I will need to remember to buy some fabrics to make something to suffice for a hooded disguise for you. These blankets aren't going to do much; especially with me having to sew them a bit together for your special size." She could hear him coming down the wooden staircase slowly, reminding her of his injury before. "How are your ribs? Are they feeling any better?"

He wheezed slightly at having his injury touched by the blind woman. "It still hurts, so be careful there," Jin advised as he directed Lily's hand away from his ribs.

"Alright, are you covered up?" Upon his verbal agreement, she held onto his hand to make her way towards the front door. Her hand fiddling with the doorknob, she opened it to step outside and then down the stairs with Jin's help. "So what had you so spooked before?" Lily wondered as her sandaled feet made it to the grass.

"About what?" Jin asked with a nervous laugh as his scaly length crept down the porch staircase after her.

"When I suggested burning the candles, you got quite upset." Lily made it out to the road wondering if the milk woman passed by the farm already. "Do you smell any foreign horses?"

Jin could always recognize the scent of the Cormac Farm's horses, so he searched the air for any beast that was not recognizable to him. "No, I don't scent anything around here. If you're hoping to catch that woman coming down the road, I am sure she hasn't passed yet." He was quiet about the first comment Lily made as he guided her up the road as they did the last time to search for the Mallow girl, Mary.

"Jin," Lily began a bit sternly, "you're ignoring my first question. Is something wrong? Are you still nervous about what happened with the barn fire?" With her arm about his slightly, she could feel him tense up under her questions. "Jin? Come now, you can tell me."

"You humans are impossible," he slightly grumbled, his elfin ears faltering. "I just…I just have been having bad dreams lately about Silver being caught in human flames and screaming for my help." His eyes wavered as they threatened to fill up with tears. "I don't…I just don't want that to come true—ever!"

"You poor thing," said Lily as she gazed slightly off to the side with her blank eyes. "Sometimes dreams can be just that, Jin. They can be about things we fear most." She could tell he was not feeling any better, prompting her to stop in her stride to caress Jin's cheek underneath the many blankets and quilts he had upon his long, serpent body. "Do not let one dream strike fear into you. Silver will be fine, and so will your babies she is no doubt carrying inside of her."

Jin found some comfort within her words and actions as he touched her hand carefully, making sure not to puncture her skin with his toxic nails. Before anything else could be said, Jin's ear flickered at the distant sound of a horse and carriage being pulled behind it. "I think she is coming this way."

Sure enough, the carriage being ridden by Mary came within sight from beyond the sloping hill. The horse once again became uneasy, sensing the demon not too far from him with a flare of his nostrils and a bob of his head. "Whoa, whoa, there," Mary said calmly to the edgy stallion. She looked beyond the black horse to find the two figures standing in her way once more. "Oh, hi, it is you two again. Forgive me, but I forgot your names."

"My name is Lily, and this is Jin," the blind woman reminded Mary with a tender smile. "We are sorry to burden you once more, Mary, but could you give us a lift into the Eytheria castle town market? We would gladly walk ourselves, but Jin still has that injury, and he isn't allowed to walk much."

Mary gazed over at Jin who only looked up through the shadow of the blankets about him. She could see his deep, blue eyes through the darkness, and it unsettled her a bit. "Uh-of course, I have no problem with that."

Lily could hint something slightly upsetting within Mary's tone when she said that. It made her nervous when she noticed the Mallow woman was staring long and hard at Jin's face. "Is something wrong, Mary?"

"N-No, his eyes are just…very unique," Mary admitted aloud with a wave of her hand. "They seem to shine in the darkness."

"I've been told," Jin responded from under the only cover he had.

Not wishing for anything else to be said, Lily urged Jin to the back of the wagon where they'd be able to get on board. She kept a gentle hold on Jin's rough hand to get herself into the back of the carriage where the milk supplies were being kept. "Come on, Jin, up you go." Lily made sure that most of him was inside of the wagon before calling to Mary. "We're ready to go." The reins snapped causing the carriage to jolt forwards as they were on their way to the market. Lily's blank eyes searched for Jin. "Are all in okay? I can only imagine how cramped you might be in here."

"I am fine," Jin answered behind his disguise. "The perks of being a serpent demon is you can flex your body a good bit to fit any space."

--

A few hours down the road, they made it to the market place. Mary spoke to the guards once more, convincing them to let her pass with her cargo while Lily and Jin waited. Lily heard the guards okay Mary's goods, the carriage jolting as the horse pulled forwards. "While we're here, remind me to grab some things from my house. I am not sure how long I will be helping with the Cormac girls, so I might as well be prepared."

Jin nodded as the farm cart came to a halt. His ears shot up slightly as he looked over at Mary. Mary looked over her shoulder at the two. "I've got many stops, so I am afraid this is as far as I can go. I hope that is alright."

Lily smiled at Mary. "This is just fine." Her fingers finding the latch that kept the back door of the cart closed, she unfastened it and stepped down the stairs carefully with Jin holding her hand. She waited at the bottom of the stairs for him. "Are you ready, Jin?"

"Yes, I am ready," said Jin as he managed to pull his entire body out discreetly.

"Thanks again, Mary." She bowed slightly to the young Mallow woman. "May the Goddess watch you on your journeys."

"Thank you, Miss. Lily, same to you." With another snap of the reins, the black stallion took off steadily down the stone roads to the nightly stops it had to make that late evening.

Lily hiked up her dress a bit and made her way over towards Jin to touch his cheek. "Are you feeling okay? Are you up to this?" She was referring to his injury, knowing that most strenuous movements would pain him. She felt him nod against her hand, making a smile appear upon her face. "I apologize once again for this. I just need help with this party. Neda still has yet to cheer up. Blythe is handling it better than Neda is."

"To lose somebody you love is never easy," Jin sympathized, thinking about his nightmares he had been having as well as thinking of his alpha. "My alpha lost a whole nest to humans, and he still begrudges them as I am sure Neda will to my kind."

"You don't seem too hurt by that," Lily pointed out as they made their way about the streets she knew fairly well even blind. "Your words were quite calm just then."

Jin shrugged his broad shoulders with a subtle sigh through his nostrils. "I cannot make Neda understand I didn't kill her parents intentionally just as I cannot make Dustin understand not all humans are evil to serpent demons. He already knows that I've been around humans, and he nearly disowned me for it. That is how far his hatred runs."

Lily felt her heart hurt with sorrow for Dustin. "I am sorry for his loss. I am aware how large serpent nests can get, so he must have lost a lot of loved ones at the hands of men."

"He lost hundreds," Jin said with a sigh. "So, where did you want to go?"

"Can you tell me what road we're on? Forgive me, but unless I know exactly where I am, I won't be able to direct us from here." Lily parted from Jin for a moment, reaching her hand out to search for a nearby post. She found it soon enough, making her feel of the cold iron before looking over her shoulder. "If only I could figure out what this sign said, but it is too high up to feel of the words…"

Jin slithered closer to the woman, gazing up at the slightly, swinging sign that had a few words carved into it. "It says West Eytheria Market, and it is pointing this way." He grabbed onto her hand to point it in the west direction.

The woman was surprised as she gazed upwards in Jin's direction, slightly wide-eyed. "You can read our language too?"

"I know a good many words," said Jin thinking it wasn't that big of a deal. "Dustin taught me these things, as I think I explained before. He wanted us all to be on alert around humans and know what they were planning. I just took it a bit further sometimes. There is a wizard who speaks to both humans and demons, and I learned to read further from him."

"What is his name?"

"Suzuka," Jin answered simply. "You might know him. He lives around the human market place, but on the outside walls of it."

"I've heard of him, but I've never met him," Lily admitted as she pointed towards the direction of the palace. "We have to go north. There are some places that are still open around the castle in case the royal family is in need of anything." She held onto Jin's arm once more to have him guide her to the northern part of the market place. "I used to love to go shopping no matter the hours of the night with my former husband." Lily was silent for a moment as she shifted her eyes downwards. "I must admit, I do miss him."

Catching her sadness, Jin shifted his attention to Lily with a slight twitch of his elfin ears. "He must have really hurt you—more so than you let on when we first met."

"Well, I cannot deny that he left a rather awful pain in my heart. I guess I wasn't good enough for him." The thought alone hurt Lily, causing her to stop to recollect herself and her sadness she refused to show before others. "For many years I haven't been good enough for anybody."

Catching her words of self-loathing, Jin prompted the woman to face him even if she couldn't see him. "I don't know why you say such things about yourself." Jin slid his right hand against her cheek, mindful of his nails. "If you weren't so resistant towards me, I would show you." Leaning down, he kissed her cheek with his lips and a scrape of his forked tongue.

Feeling his warm breath against her skin, Lily hitched slightly in breath before pulling from his kiss. "That is quite kind of you, Jin, but you forget your race and mine." She pulled his hand gently from her cheek, smiling for the serpent demon. "Being a male demon, it is in your body to want to make babies with any female you come across, but I should not be one of them."

Jin twitched his ears slightly at her words, twisting his mouth to the side slightly as if in thought. "Are you saying I am run by my body? I would think I have more control than that."

Lily could only chuckle at his words, not sure what to say to that. She knew demons of any kind had impulses and the males' were to mate. The blind woman was aware that Jin would be unable to comprehend that. "Let me know when we're at the stores. I need to find Neda something and bake her something special."

"How will I know if they're open?" Jin wondered, looking about the darkened streets lined by guards. The sight and smell of them made him nervous as he resisted the urge to hiss out of fear and irritation.

"Most of these stores should be closed up with nobody behind the booth," Lily explained. "The ones that are open should have somebody behind them with a lantern lit or some candles at the very least." As Jin continued to escort her, she turned her head slightly towards him. "What do you plan on getting her?"

"I don't know. I told you, we don't celebrate something called a birthday," Jin said, smelling a small flame about the roads. "One might be open down this way." The serpent demon headed down one of the many roads about the market area to see a flame flickering a bit within the darkness. "Ah, there is one."

"We'll look at a few things and see what she may like besides that necklace of your scales she is making." She made it up to the booth, feeling the warmth of the flame against her skin to indicate the seller was indeed there willing to do business at that hour of the night.

"Oh, hello there," the business woman responded, moving her hand from her cheek. She was honestly, quite bored trying to sell at that hour, but she managed to make a bit more profits than those who were only opened during the day. "What can I help you with this night that the Goddess has blessed us with?"

"Forgive me, but I cannot see," said Lily as she placed her hands upon the silky blanket covering the top of the booth. "What is it that you sell?"

The business woman looked over at Jin, unable to tell if he could see or not seeing as he had his hood up as she looked at her wares as if to remind herself. "Well, I sell fabrics for tailoring and some jewelry pieces." She bent behind her booth to pull out a few jewelry items she had to display.

"This table cloth feels very nice," said Lily as she felt the silken fabric beneath her hands. "Where did you manage to get this kind of fabric with this feeling to it?"

"Oh, that? It is fine silk, which I pay top dollar for from foreign, traveling merchants from the east." She watched as Lily admired the feel of it seeing as most dresses and items were made from wool and other items that were not as comfortable as the feeling of the silk. "Do you like it? I have some of that for sell for tailoring."

While the two women spoke about prices and the rolls required, Jin eyed the jewelry she put on display. He found them to look funny, and he still wasn't sure what to get Neda even if human women did wear such things. Jin's blue eyes continued to eye the homemade items closely before stopping at a small, beautifully carved box before him. Wrapping his fingers about it, he picked it up to look at it closer. He sniffed at it as well before finding he could open it with a simple raise of the top lid. Squinting his eyes, Jin tried to make out what was inside before finally pulling the top completely back. Upon the lid falling back, a small, carved phoenix flying upwards was seen in front of a circle mirror in the back.

The store woman caught Jin playing with the box in interest. "I see you found my music box."

"Music box?" Jin asked in bewilderment looking at it from all sides with interest.

"Yes, here, I'll show you how it works." She pulled out a small key she inserted into the side to start winding up the box and then putting it down on the table.

Jin watched in interest as the phoenix flying upwards was shown spinning around to a melody that kept at a normal pace until slowing down a two or so minutes later to stop completely again. "Wow, how did you make that? I've never known music to play from a box."

"It took a lot of items I paid for, and that music part came from the east as well. They are quite crafty over there." She showed Jin to key. "You have to wind it up with this to make it work. You can even put jewelry in here, so it works as two different things."

Picking back up the music box again, he looked at Lily. "Do you think Neda would like this?"

"I am sure she will," said Lily with a nod, keeping the bolts of cloth in her hands she had paid for. "Who knows, it might put a smile on her face for once." She opened her hands to accept the music box from the wind demon before placing it down before the seller. "I'll take this as well." Paying for the rather expensive item, Lily handed the box back over to Jin before wrapping her arm about his to be escorted back down the street.

"Thank you, come again," replied the seller woman as she put some of her things back behind the booth.

"Now, I need to make a quick stop to my house to get some of my belongings, and then we need to find a ride out of here…somehow." Lily knew that at this time, transportation out of the city was hard to come by. "If we can't, are you alright to walking back to the farm?"

Jin smiled a bit. "I will make it just fine so long as I can get a resting stop at your house. I find taking breaks in between makes it a bit more tolerable," he explained as Jin made it down towards Lily's house hidden in the alleyways.


	19. Chapter 19

_**Author's Notes**_: Yay, another chapter update! Sorry for the slowness in it. I got addicted to WoW, but I think I am going to call it a month or so on that game. I got tired of it. lol

Also, I am sorry for not getting to the nitty-gritty on the actually summery I teased you all with. LOL Yeah, Jin is with Silver at the moment, but there is still so much more for me to write, and I hope to get there. I am so bad at keeping stories going on and on until actually getting to the real turn-around point. =P Sorry about that one.

Enjoy!

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Jin escorted Lily carefully through the streets to her house he remembered the location of. Opening the door for her, he slithered on inside behind the human woman to find safety within her house. He removed the hood of the blankets Jin had over his horn before shaking the rest of it off of his serpent half like he was shedding his skin. "It feels good to be out of that," he admitted as he heard the cat hissing at the serpent demon entering inside of his home. Jin erected his elfin ears slightly at the sound the domestic beast made to find the cat puffed up in the dark corner. "Did you ever feed your cat?"

Lily stared off beyond Jin at hearing his question. "Oh, no, I didn't," she admitted with a shrug. "It is fine. Cats can survive quite awhile without food. I expected to be back earlier than what I thought, so I feel kind of bad for doing that to him." Hiking her skirt up so she could kneel down a bit without dirtying up her attire, Lily outstretched her hand to Tabby. "Come here, sweetie. He isn't going to hurt you."

The cat continued to look at the serpent demon with wide eyes, not trusting the beast one bit while looking over at his master. Feeling a bit cornered, he quickly made his way over to the bed to hop upon it as means to escape.

Jin chuckled a bit as he looked down at Lily. "Well, I guess he doesn't like me still. At least I am remembered, I guess."

"Well, I need to take him back to the farm with me seeing as I'll be there for awhile," said Lily as she headed to her closet to pull a few of her belongings out to take back with her. "I have to say that I will miss my home." She ran her fingers over her belongings to find the items she couldn't live without.

"I apologize for bringing you into this, Lily." Jin slithered about the floor to sit just outside of her closet area. "I didn't expect so much to happen to me within the past week."

Lily smiled over her shoulder, placing a few clothes of hers on the ground. "It is fine, Jin. I can understand where things have gotten crazy for you." Her dainty fingers rummaging across some of the trinkets and things on the floor of her closet, she came across leather binding of a book. Pulling it out from where it was hiding, she felt a bit of dust upon it as well as golden letters engraved upon it. Even if Lily was blind she could still run her fingers over the lettering to make out what they were as she often had to do this when in the market place to read signs growing up. Her smile seemed to fade into a somber frown as she put the book out of the pile of keepsakes she was taking with her.

Jin watched her actions, coming closer to eye the book she just disregarded. He hovered over Lily to pull the book into his own hands to look at the human writing out of curiosity. "What-what does it say? These words don't make sense to me. What is this?"

The human woman looked about the darkness trying to find what Jin was referring to. "What are you talking about, you silly thing?" She let Jin guide her hands back onto the leather binding of the book she previously held. "Oh…that old thing." Holding onto Jin's scaly hand, she guided his fingers along the lettering. "It says: 'Photo Album'."

"Ah," said Jin as he kept the book in his hands to gaze at it closely. "So why did you throw it off to the side?" Opening the album, Jin widened his eyes at some of the pictures taken. "Oh, that is nice! These things stand still so you can view them."

"They are called pictures," Lily explained. "It is a complicated process to actually get one taken in black and white. My father used to fiddle on that old camera for dozens of pictures to take of the wildlife about Eytheria. He then took pictures of me, but…all of that is useless for me. I cannot see a single one of them." Lily sighed, lowering her head at the thought of never being able to see her father's pictures he took.

Jin frowned at Lily's words as he looked back down at the album to skim through some of the photos to find pictures of Lily when she was younger and some of her father. "Was your father a slender human with curly hair and face fur—what is that on his face?"

Lily chuckled a bit at Jin's choice of words. "It is called a beard, and yes, you are looking at a picture of him probably right now."

"Oh, I don't understand how humans manage to grow hair in weird places." The demon's blue eyes gazed down the black and white photo to find a little girl next to him. The girl had long, wavy hair and a dress blowing about the wind that day with her holding a straw hat upon her head. "So this little girl next to him must be you several years younger."

"Well, I was the only young female he was around, so I would say you're right," Lily said with a brief smile. "Anyways, I have no reason to keep that thing with me. What is the point if I cannot see what it has inside of it? I cannot even see what I looked like back then and how I looked growing up. A huge part of me feels like I've missed so much."

Jin was careful of his nails as he touched Lily's cheeks from behind her. "You look pretty to me. I hope that means something."

She smiled at the wind demon's comment towards her. Lily grabbed onto his wrist to feel his knuckles against her cheek before kissing the back of his hand. She looked over her shoulder at him with a weak smile. "Thank you for that," Lily mostly whispered. "That is the sweetest thing said to me since my husband left me."

The scales of the wind demon rubbed against one another as he moved closer towards the fragile woman. "He must have really hurt you to leave you feeling this way."

Lily tried to ignore the pain in her heart as she attempted to blink away her tears. "I met him in the Great Phoenix's Temple when I was a little girl. I was ten years old when I accidentally ran away from my father, who was trading in the market to explore." She recalled how she pulled away from her father and the sounds of the market place, causing her to feel her way carefully to the Goddess' Temple. "I made it into the temple safely and ran into Edmund. He was four years older than me." She smiled at the thought before looking back downwards. "Well, to make a long story short, we became close friends after that run in with one another, and we grew up to have him purpose to me."

"What happened afterwards?" Jin wondered.

With a sigh, Lily explained. "Well, three years after we got married, I found out he was seeing somebody else." She wiped her teary eyes with the back of her hand. "He came home one day and told me he was through with us. I felt…incredibly ugly that day, and my heart shattered into so many pieces. I thought I knew him, but he changed on me."

Jin looked off to the side at nothing in particular before placing his gaze back upon Lily. "I thought humans were supposed to stay with a mate for a long time. Why did he at least not come back?" The serpent demon rolled out on his front beside the blind woman with his arms crossed under his chin. "When serpent demons mate, they at least watch over the women in their nest and their babies."

Lily chuckled within her throat as she could feel the scaly underbelly of Jin's tail coiling about her wrist gently. "Oh yeah?" She raised her thin brow slightly. "Well, I am afraid to say that the human race is a bit more complicated than that, Jin. What you all have is everlasting, but the human race is not born that way." Lily sighed with a shrug of her slender shoulders as she continued to look through some of the books lining her closet floor. "Human males have the right to leave their women if they so choose. Human females cannot leave their men no matter the circumstances."

"So, they just leave their mates and go to another one without coming back to the other?" Jin was a bit confused still by human behavior.

"That is basically it," said Lily somberly. "Our world is much different than yours, Jin. If the human men find somebody else to love, they leave the other they were with. They cannot share love as your kind often does…and I know some of the females wouldn't be too happy sharing a male." As she was speaking, she didn't realize the serpent tail of the snake demon was sneaking up to caress under her chin. The tip of his tail cupped Lily's chin to have her look in his direction. She inhaled sharply not expecting that from Jin, feeling his breath close to her face. "J-Jin…?"

"You were so resistant to me earlier," Jin whispered between the two of them as his forked tongue slid forth to caress her cheek. "Is it because you truly don't want to be touched or is it because you are still so hurt by any affection?"

Lily sighed as she removed Jin's serpent tail from its hold upon her chin. "It is many things, Jin. It is complicated." She felt a bit uncomfortable at that moment being in her closet with the large serpent beast. The blind woman pushed herself up off of the floor to try and escape the situation only to feel the snake's scales rubbing up against her body to bind her in place almost. "Jin, stop that!" She demanded angrily with her fists clinched at her sides.

Jin looked over his shoulder at Lily who he had wrapped up a good bit in his snake body, pushing himself up off of the floor to come eye to eye to the resistant human. "What is wrong, Lily. Tell me." He witnessed the woman look the other way upon feeling his breath upon her left cheek. "Tell me; you know you can trust me!" Jin admitted to himself he felt a bit insulted she was acting as though she didn't.

"It's not that simple," Lily grumbled as she closed her eyes.

"Yes it is!" Jin insisted.

"No, it's not!" Lily said angrily.

"Just tell me!" Jin pleaded.

"Jin!" The blind woman hissed as a warning, her words hinting she may lose it soon.

"Tell me; tell me!"

At that moment, Lily exploded angrily. "I just want the human race to be one that mate for life!" Jin was silent this round as Lily tried her hardest not to let her tears of anger escape from her foggy eyes. "I-I don't want to offer my heart to anybody and have it be broken again…" Lily admitting such a thing caused her to feel less pressure upon her body as Jin loosened his tight hold upon her form. She fell backwards upon her rump to lean against the scaly abdomen of the serpent demon coiled about her. "Your offers, Jin, are kind—they are _very_ kind and make me feel wanted again—but I just cannot put myself up to being one lady in a relationship full of several others."

Jin's elfin ears faltered as he looked down at Lily sadly. "Then your father must have misunderstood something about our race to have you think we treat our mates any differently than the next one." He placed his hand upon her shoulder with a smile. "I had many in my old nest, and I loved each of them dearly. Before then, I was just asked to open the women of my entire clan, so I wasn't connected to them in any form."

To take her mind off of her pain, Lily decided to focus on Jin's past happiness. "Your old nest was big?" She turned her head back around to try and find Jin's face through her wavy tresses that were soon falling over her left eye.

"I had ten mates," Jin boasted. "Some of them I did open and mate to like I did Silver."

Lily chuckled as she ran her fingers through her hair to try and fix it out of her sight. "I guess serpent demons prefer something that has been untouched and unsoiled, hu?" When she heard Jin's words of confusion at her words, she repeated. "It means, you basically prefer women that haven't had sex before, right? The human term is called a 'virgin'."

"Well, very few do." Jin frowned at the thought, looking behind him at nothing in particular. "I know my big brother did. If the woman smelled of any other demon, he would turn his nose up at her." He blew upwards to get his bangs to fly up before landing back where they were. "But some don't expect every female available to be untouched as you say; especially in big clans. Three of the females I had in my nest were previously taken by other serpent demons, but their mates died by human attacks, so I took them into my family."

The woman's hands made it to Jin's face so Lily could guide her lips to his to kiss him briefly. She figured that the wind demon was confused as he went silent for a moment or two. Lily moistened her lips with her tongue briefly, feeling dumbfounded herself even for words before managing to muster up some. "You sound like you were a sweet and caring husband, Jin. I wish there were more of your kind in the human world." She kissed him upon the forehead next upon finding the area with her palm. "I better get these things together, so I can make it back to the farm. Would you like some fish to eat? I have some raw ones in the cupboard in a bucket of ice."

"That sounds delicious to me," Jin grinned as he slithered over towards the cupboard he knew Lily was mentioning. He opened up the cabinets to hunt through some of the items Lily had hidden in there to find the raw fish near the bottom. Grinning widely to show off his fangs, he grabbed one of the fish by the tail to put it into his mouth to eat off the meat he wanted off of the bones. His acute hearing could pick up the growling sounds of Tabby causing him to look over at the cat on the bed. "Do you want some?" He asked the house cat, handing one of the fish over to him.

Tabby looked at the fish wide-eyed as well as the demon only to growl angrily still and hiss. He had the instinct that the demon might swallow him whole causing him to take his life over food any day.

"Hmm, no need to get fussy," said Jin as headed for the next fish.

--

Eventually Lily managed to pack up her belongings and remove them from the house along with her cat. She allowed Jin to carry most of her luggage as she kept a hold of her rather frightened pet. "Now then, I just have to find a way out of here by carriage."

"I thought you humans had many horses around," Jin noted as he kept a hold of Lily's things. "I see them everywhere usually."

"Well, yes, but that doesn't give me the right to just take any horse I see to ride out of here." Lily felt her way to the main trading square, sighing as she listened to all sounds only hearing the noises of the crickets. "Jin, can you smell any horses around here?"

Jin sniffed about the human air to try and find a horse's scent. His nostrils flaring about and his forked tongue slipping forth under his disguise, he used his wind powers to help bring about different smells from different directions. Catching the smell of iron and a steed with it, Jin hissed and shook his head at the awful smell of the knight. "A man in iron on a four legged beast draws near from that direction." The redhead grabbed onto Lily's hand to point her towards the northeast. "Go talk to him. I don't want him coming any closer to me."

She could sense the anger and irritation in the demon's voice, prompting Lily to raise her hands to try and sooth the beast. "Shhh, I will do so. Just wait right here and don't make a sound." Grabbing the hem of her skirt with her cat still in her arms, Lily hurried over towards the knight who she heard stop upon his steed soon enough. "Excuse me, sir, but I require assistance. You see, I need to make it to the Cormac Farm, and I was hoping you could find me and my friend over there some ways of doing so."

The man in the armor looked down at Lily and Jin with suspicion as not many people were out and about at this time of night unless to cause problems. He couldn't see anything further beyond his inner feeling, so with a sigh, he nodded over his shoulder. "Tell your friend to follow me. There is a young lad at night who gives people such as yourselves a ride to wherever it is you're going." The hooves of the stallion he rode clopped upon the stone beneath him as the knight turned the horse around.

Lily looked over in the direction she felt she last left Jin to wave for him to follow her as she met him halfway in the center. "He is going to guide us to our way safely out of here, so no sounds and no sudden movements, okay?" She whispered to him as she fixed his hood to make sure everything was indeed covered. "Now, come with me." Taking the demon's hand, she guided him behind the knight as the two were led through the many streets built within the castle town market.

Jin tried to keep his emotions under control as he kept a hold of Lily and her belongings. The smell of the iron was really getting to his body, and he almost felt threatened to attack until the knight finally came to a stop to reveal a teen boy with an old looking horse he was petting and feeding. He looked up through his auburn bangs and the brown hat that mostly covered his head to spy the knight and the two people he was escorting. "Oh," the young boy began in surprise as he stepped further into view to show off his overalls and white undershirt. "Hello there. Can I help you?"

Lily parted from the wind serpent for a moment to approach the young boy she could hear by herself. "Please, we need a ride back to the Cormac Farm. Can you help us?"

"Of course," the boy answered as he removed the feed-bag from the old horse he owned. "I know where that is. It is to the south a bit, isn't it?"

With the feeling that everything was fine with the two, the knight turned his armored horse around with a tug on the reins. He guided his horse back down the direction from whence he came only to pause a moment to look at Jin in his odd attire. The knight didn't notice the irritable and nervous look shrouded behind the cover over his head. His heels nudging into the side of the horse, the knight took off quickly back to his post.

Jin sighed with relief as he headed closer to Lily only to find the horse getting edgy as he got closer. He witnessed as Lily backed up and headed closer to Jin's side upon the old horse doing so. "I guess horses that don't belong to the men in iron get easily rattled around me," he whispered to the blind human.

"That is because knight horses are trained to not rear around demons as those men are always around slaying them," Lily confessed as she tried to keep Jin a bit backed up away from the uneasy horse.

The young boy grabbed onto the reins of the unsettled beast to try and calm it down by patting his nose. "Sorry," the boy apologized as he kept the horse on his hooves. "He usually never does that. I don't know what got into him." He patted the side of the old stallion's neck. "Let me get him ready for heading out of here. It'll take just a moment."

"We'll be back in no time," Lily said between her and Jin with a smile. "And we can get ready for Neda's birthday party."

With time creeping steadily by, Silver found her jitters of being in a human house alone getting worse. She wanted to run out the door, but not even Silver was aware of where all the doors led by heart, even if it was a small house. _When is he coming back to this human nest?_ Silver wondered to herself as she fidgeted her hands nervously. Her hands gripping onto the doorknob, she managed to twist it the right way and pull to peek back outside with a low hiss at the frightening smells. She hesitated a bit at the thought of at least waiting outside of the house before finally leading herself out of the bedroom the knight had been using.

Silver slithered carefully out into the hallway to look around wide eyed. She wasn't sure where all the doors led to, making her a bit curious as she snuck her way lowly towards the adjacent room from where she was. Her serpent body moved about the banister as she pushed against the cracked door to hear it squeak upon its hinges. Silver poked her head inside of the dark room to sniff around with a low hiss at the scent of humans. Staying low to the ground, she continued onwards inside regardless to get a closer look at the human children. Making it over to Blythe's bedside, the white haired serpent female peeked over the bedside, her eyes glistening off of small fractions of light that caught the surface of her eyes.

Blythe didn't stir from her slumber as the serpent demon eyed her closely with a low hiss at the strong scent the young human was emanating. Silver moved in closer to Blythe's face covered in shadows to get a better look at the human child. _They have no scales_, Silver thought to herself. _Their skin looks so smooth and gross._ When she caught Blythe stirring for once, the serpent woman backed down quickly to cower there upon the floor to avoid being spotted. Staying close to the ground, she moved over towards Neda's bed to look over the bedside cautiously with her glistening eyes that caught the moonlight glowing through the window on that side of the bedroom. _Interesting looking creatures._

The staircase began to moan as the boards felt the pressure of somebody walking up them. It put the young Silver on alert as she tried to back up in between Neda's bed and the nightstand though her rather large body was unable to fit entirely. She watched the door a few feet away from her with wide eyes, her claws digging into the floorboards beneath her as the hinges creaked loudly upon the door moving slowly towards her to reveal the person behind it. The tension building up inside of her coldblooded body relaxed upon seeing Jin standing there soon enough. "Oh, Jin," she sighed in relief as she slithered quickly and quietly over towards him. "It is just you."

Jin opened his arms to Silver, accepting her into his embrace. "What are you doing out and about? I thought I asked you to stay in that room, Silver!" He scolded in a high whisper between the two of them. When one of the little girls stirred, Jin backed up slightly as Silver cowered in his arms making him look down upon her frightened form with a chuckle. "Why so scared? They are just little kids. They aren't going to hurt you while they are sleeping." His hand sliding down to his mate's wrist, he tried to pull her over towards Neda. "Here, I'll show you."

"N-No! Jin!" Silver stuttered as she tried to resist only to be soon standing next to the youngest girl's bedside once more. She looked down at the sleeping child, wanting to move lower to the floor only to have Jin urge otherwise.

"She's not going to hurt you. Watch." Jin released Silver's wrist to bend down and pick up Neda within his embrace. He heard his mate inhale sharply in surprise at how close he was to even a 'baby' human. "See? She is just asleep and dreaming." Looking down upon Neda, he watched as she moved closer towards his chest to feel of his body again.

"How can you be that close to a human babe?" Silver wondered in amazement. She hesitantly started to reach over towards Neda's cheek to try and touch it.

"Be careful with your nails," Jin warned softly between them. He witnessed in the darkness as Silver pulled her hand back for a moment. "If you pinch her skin, you'll poison her body. She's so young that a single dose of it will numb her entire form rather quickly."

Silver made sure that the flats of her fingers rested against Neda's smooth skin to feel of it, pulling it back quickly when the young human moved against her touch. "Their skin is so smooth feeling," Silver whispered in the dark room. She watched Neda closely, widening her eyes upon seeing the young girl cling to his body as if it were somebody she knew and trusted. Silver stumbled upon her words, not sure what to say and even how to say it.

Jin smiled down at the young girl through his wild hair before eyeing the bewildered Silver. "She just knows I am a male." He looked back down at Neda, so he could be careful in putting her back to bed. "I think she believes I am her dad." Placing her fragile body back down upon the bed, Jin covered her back up while brushing some of Neda's loose hairs out of her face. "She called me by that name once while asleep."

"But-you cannot be their father," Silver felt the need to point out eagerly. "You are a serpent demon, Jin, and she is a two-legged girl! If that man in iron were to ever catch you around here, he would surely kill you!"

He could sense her worry as Jin listened to Silver's words. "Do not worry, my dear," Jin assured as he held onto her scaly fingers. "I only plan on making sure no harm comes their way. If luck may have it, the knight may very well be the one to watch over them both for me, and I will be their guardian when they step into the woodlands." He offered a tender smile to Silver as he escorted her towards the bedroom door. "I just cannot abandon the promise I made to Pearl when she died."

Lily was downstairs putting a few things away when she heard the stairs moaning to announce the serpent demons' coming down the steps. "It is good to hear you are okay, Silver," said Lily over her shoulder as she smiled. "The sun should rise soon, so I would advise that you both slip out of here before Thane comes back here."

Jin helped Silver to the open window to help her slip out of the house unnoticed by anybody. "What about you, Lily? Didn't you need help with the celebration for Neda?"

The blind woman shook her head. "You bought something for her, and that is all I could ask for. However, there is one other thing you could do for me before you leave for the night."

The horse clad in armor ridden by Thane could be heard coming up the dirt road as the sun was soon peaking over the mountain range. With his hours at his post up for the night, he was on his way back to the Cormac Farm at a steady pace. Silver could hear and smell the knight from where she was hiding within the woodlands about the pasture.

She began to panic at the sight of the knight making his way up to the house. "J-Jin! Jin, hurry up!" Silver was unaware of what she'd do if the man in iron went into the house to attack her already injured mate. She looked frantically about the farm, wondering what she could do as a distraction. Her slit eyes stumbled upon the chicken pen. Slithering quickly over towards the birds, she snuck into the pen to attack one to prompt the birds to cause a riot.

Thane heard the chickens squawking crazily, he diverting his attention from entering the house to the farm birds running about in circles with their white and brown feathers flying everywhere. The sight of the serpent demon female made his heart beat wildly; he widened his eyes and unsheathed his sword. "Hey! Get out of there, you fowl beast!" Thane demanded angrily as his armor clanked while running over towards the trouble causing demon.

Hearing the commotion outside, Jin panicked as he spun around to gaze out the window from where the sounds were coming from. "The knight is back earlier than I thought! Silver!"

"Oh no!" Lily gasped as she ran towards the front door. "I will try to stop him! You need to get Silver away from him!" Throwing open the door without hesitation, Lily ran out into the farm field with her hands out in front of her. "Thane! Thane, where are you!" She yelled curiously over the frightened animals. Her fingers reaching the bark of one of the trees on the borders of the farm, Lily trembled in worry. "He must have chased her into the woods. I cannot go in there, or I will get lost!"

Jin had come up beside Lily to hear her concerns. "I can go in there and stop him. Just stay here, Lily," he ordered as he hurried into the woodlands about the farm. Quickly Jin rushed through the forest, taking in Silver's scent only to find it overclouded with the smell of iron. "Silver! Silver, where are you!" Jin called out in demonic. Lowering himself to the forest floor, Jin took in the scents about him eagerly to find a new one joining the two already. "B-Blood…?" Realizing that any one of them could be injured, he followed the trail of blood that had splattered on the ground, mating with the soil. "Silver!" Jin yelled again.

Silver dragged herself against the forest floor from the injuries she had received from Thane's blade within the small, open meadow she found herself within. She looked over her blooded shoulder to the oncoming knight who she had managed to bite and claw at herself, causing a few injuries to his armor and his skin that was exposed. He was staggering towards her and obviously was willing to take more hits than Silver could withstand when it came to his blade. Not able to take anymore, Silver rolled onto her side, watching his blade with a low, weak hiss. "Forgive me, Jin," she whispered in demonic mostly to herself.

Thane grabbed onto his sword with both hands to swing it upright before attempting to come down to kill the demon creature he was trained to kill on sight. Before he could make it down to Silver's body, Jin lunged at the knight from behind Silver's weakened form, which faced the bushes, to bite at Thane's neck with an irritable hiss. Thane's eyes widened as he brought his sword up to try and block Jin's oncoming attack. The sound of Jin's teeth and claws striking the sword echoed throughout the woods as the force of it caused Thane to stumble backwards.

Jin wrapped his serpent half about Silver's gently as he felt some of her open wounds. His elfin ears back, he hissed a warning at the brave, young knight. "Get away from her!" He demanded in demonic, knowing the knight wouldn't understand his words.

Thane checked several times with his fingers to see if his neck was bleeding from the sharp fangs coming at the exposed area. When he looked over at the angry male demon, he widened his eyes at the familiar creature. "You again!" He exclaimed, pointing at the redheaded demon. "I remember you from Kalrune Village!" The young knight saw the bandages about his body to indicate the serpent demon had been injured from Thane's last attack on Jin. "So somebody took pity upon you and tended to the mark I left…I wonder…who did?" He mumbled mostly to himself. Thane gazed down at the injured female demon Jin was guarding with slight sympathy though he kept his sword out, as he didn't trust the aggressive male's actions. "I see; she must be your mate then." He began to slowly backup so as not to give Jin any reason to attack. "Fine, I will spare her—just keep her away from the farm!" With that said, Thane turned and headed back to the farm quickly.

With Thane gone, Jin turned to Silver quickly. "Silver, what is wrong with you! You nearly got yourself killed!" He was worried and furious at the same time at the situation his mate caused.

"I am sorry," Silver wheezed, flinching at her injuries as they hurt her entire form every time she moved. "The man in iron was making it inside of the house, and you were still inside. I had to do something to spare you from being hurt worse…"

Jin sighed while closing his eyes knowing in such a case, either one of them would have been hurt. The only major difference would be Lily getting caught talking to him. "You crazy, woman…" He reached down to embrace Silver, resting his cheek against her white hair. "I am used to being the one to protect those in my nest, not the other way around." After embracing her, he placed Silver gently back down upon the grass. "I will be back. I need to find something to cover your injuries with. You're bleeding too much." To make sure she wasn't exposed to any possible enemies, Jin covered Silver up by a few bushes and snapped branches. "Stay here, my love," he begged softly. "I will be back soon." Hurrying back into the woodlands, Jin hunted down the items he would need to conceal Silver's injuries.


	20. Chapter 20

_**Author's Notes**_: Holy Lord, people, I am so sorry. X_X I promise I didn't die. I just got addicted to WoW again. You know how I go—I go in and out of it depending on my moods. I will try to get back in a steady roll with my stories to get these finished before I am 30. LOL Enjoy

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Lily waited nervous back inside of the house near the porch, listening for anything or anybody recognizable heading in her direction. Eventually the sound of armor could be heard clanking within the distance, only to get louder the closer the knight got to the home's front porch. "Thane, is that you?" Lily inquired eagerly, her hand on her chest where her heart was beating rapidly in worry. "Are you okay? What happened to the snake demon?"

"He will hopefully not be coming back after this moment, if the creature has any brains at all," Thane remarked irritably as he made it past Lily only to be grabbed by her hands quickly before he could make it to the front door. He hadn't forgotten what Lily thought and said about the snake demons before, making him gaze down at her blind sight with his mouth twisted to the side in wonder of what she may say to him.

"You didn't kill him, did you?"

Thane paused for a moment, almost curling his lip in disgust at having her sound so worried for the beast. "I didn't kill him," he eventually answered as he moved one of his hands upon the doorknob to open it for himself. "He is still alive out there somewhere, but I told him to never return or I would kill him."

Lily closed her eyes tightly as she began to cry heavily mostly in relief Jin made it out okay, releasing Thane so he could enter inside of the house. "Thank the Goddess you're okay, Jin," Lily whispered to herself upon hearing the door close behind her. "I don't know what I would do right now if I lost you."

Silver remained hidden within the forest surrounding the farmland, trembling from the pain the wind would cause to her open wounds. Her nails dug into the ground with a hiss as the blood continued to ooze from her opened injuries. "Jin, where are you…?" The bushes rustling caught her unstable attention from where she was lying out of sight. She looked nervously about her, praying that it wasn't the knight coming back to kill her. Her weary eyes shined with tears of anxiety with the situation she was in, Silver eventually relaxed when the bushes parted and led way for Jin. "Oh, Jin…thank goodness it is you…"

The way she spoke sounded winded and as if she was dying. When he saw her about to lie her head down and close her eyes again in his company, Jin quickly dropped the Paluu Tree leaves on the ground he was going to wrap her wounds up in. "Hey, Silver, don't sleep just yet," he insisted. Resting his hand upon her back, he lifted himself up slightly to come closer to her face. "Come on; it'll be alright. Just hold out for a bit longer, okay?" said Jin with a shake to her blooded form.

"I am just so tired…," Silver whispered against the ground her cheek was resting against.

"I need to get you wrapped up and back to the nest," said the wind serpent hastily as he grabbed the Paluu Tree leaves to start doing so. "You're losing too much blood."

"Take me to Kurama," she pleaded at that moment as he was working on her body. Her eyes blinked wildly as if to fight to keep them open. "He can heal me…" With that said, Silver's head collapsed to the ground, her eyes closing.

"Silver, don't fall asleep!" He begged again, shaking her harshly once more only to get no response. Jin could hear her breathing at the very least, relieved to find she was alive still. With most of her grave wounds wrapped up, he picked her up within his arms and let her serpent body rest about his as he was eager to get her back to the nest.

Lily eventually came back inside of the farm house once she had managed to recollect her emotions. Her hand upon her rapidly beating heart, with her apron still halfway to her face to indicate she was wiping her tears from her face. The blind woman could hear the knight about the kitchen as he was removing some of his armor to be free from it as he was tired from work and the chase after the serpent demon. She could also feel the knight's eyes on her, making Lily look away from him with a shaky inhale of breath.

Thane merely sighed to himself and looked down at his iron shoes he was removing from his sweaty form next. "So today is something special? I saw you came back from the market place with quite a few things in your possession." Hearing a meowing sound, the knight looked over at the chair across from the sofa he was sitting upon to see Tabby there. "And a cat too."

"That's my cat," Lily responded as she cleared her sinuses with a sniffle. "His name is Tabby, and today is Neda's birthday. I went to the market to buy some things for her and to retrieve some of my belongings." Her hands feeling around the cabinets, she pulled the pots and pans she needed for making breakfast that morning.

"So today is her birthday," said Thane as he slipped into something more comfortable for rest in dealing with a simple shirt, colored in off-white and a wide neck and blue like pants that reached his ankles. "I guess I'll get her a late gift before I get off of work tonight at my shift. I am too tired to go now."

Lily smiled to herself, closing her eyes to remind herself Thane was just doing what he was trained to, and he wasn't a bad man. "I am sure she'll appreciate the gesture." Hearing the floorboards creak behind her, Lily gazed over her shoulder towards the staircase. "It is good to hear you up and about Blythe."

The young Cormac girl stood there a bit confused before pointing at herself. "How did you know it was me? I didn't even speak."

"I know that Neda won't get up until she is moved or has the energy to," Lily announced while heating up the clay oven. The wooden logs burning, Lily got to her feet to dust off her apron. "How is she feeling today? It is her birthday today after all, so I am curious if she feels like coming down later to have a celebration."

Remembering that it was her sister's birthday, Blythe slightly inhaled from the shock of it before looking up the dark staircase where their bedroom was located. "I am not sure," sighed Blythe as she made it to the dinning room table to sit down. "I would hope so. She was so looking forward to her birthday before mom and dad passed away. Now I am sure she doesn't even realize what day it is or even care."

Thane listened in on the conversation from where he was sitting around the corner against the wall on the sofa. Smiling to himself, he got to his feet and appeared before the young farm girl to show he was there if she wasn't aware already. "Well, if your sister doesn't want to celebrate it down here, we'll just move it up to her bedroom then."

She didn't expect the knight to be back so soon, so Blythe jumped slightly at his voice, startled a bit. Hearing his comments, the young girl smiled with a nod. "I am sure she would like that." Turning her attention back to the items on the table, Blythe began to nosily shift through them to find some of Lily's belongings. Her fingers rolling across the music box caused the item to gently hum a tune briefly. The sound caught Lily's attention from where she was cooking breakfast.

"Such a curious one you are to go through my things," she chuckled lightly.

"What is this?" Blythe wondered curiously as she tipped the box just slightly to look at it from all angles. "I have never seen one of these before."

Cracking one of the eggs upon the countertop, Lily opened it carefully into the pan she had before looking over her shoulder slightly to look in Blythe's direction as if she could see. "I was told it is called a music box. A friend of the family picked it out for Neda as a birthday gift, so try to keep that hidden from her."

Blythe put the music box back where she found it, covering it up with the other belongings Lily brought with her in the carrying sack. "I just hope she'll come down to eat breakfast today. She hasn't been too eager on joining us at all."

Lily was silent a moment as was Thane. They both felt rather bad about it, wishing there was something they could do to lighten her spirits. Smiling to herself, Lily closed her misty covered eyes. "Then we will do as Thane suggested earlier dealing with her birthday and just take the breakfast up to her bedroom then. If she feels more comfortable eating alone, then we shall allow it. Whatever it takes to get her to eat, right?"

A rush of relief came over Blythe realizing that she was in good hands no matter what and so was her sister. Looking down at her hands, which were resting upon her lap, she nodded. "Thank you—thank you both for helping us."

Beldon was up early that morning as soon as he felt the sun set upon his scales he had intertwined about his mate's. The other nests were steadily awakening around him as he set out to check on Jin and his daughter. As he was making his way through the forestland surrounding the desolate, human graveyard, he heard several twigs and dry leaves cracking in the distance. He was a bit nervous and on guard at the hurried sounds coming in his direction. In case it was a regular human, he lowered down to the ground and hissed a warning to make sure they would leave, but the sounds didn't cease. When the figures soon came into view, he was surprised at the sight before him to see an injured Silver in Jin's blooded arms. "Silver! Jin!" He panicked as he hurried towards the two. "What happened!"

"I tried to help her," Jin insisted with labored breaths. "A knight attacked her and hurt her badly…"

The alpha grabbed onto his daughter, not caring about Jin at that moment. "I need to get her to Kurama," he mostly muttered to himself as his eyes gazed over her deep, sword wounds. "Go get the alpha of the earth nest! Hurry!" Beldon demanded almost angrily at Jin when it came to his carelessness of his daughter.

Jin did quickly as he was told and hurried to find the alpha of the earth nest. In his rushed behavior, he blew past Touya and didn't even pass a glance at him. The winter naga brought his hands up to his face to block the aggressive wind currents Jin's attitude projected about the area before bringing them down to see it was indeed his friend making his way by. "Jin? What is wrong?" He asked himself as he didn't want to bother the wind demon at the moment.

Kurama was resting still within his nest when he heard the commotion Jin was carrying. His arms overlapped underneath his chin, he opened one of his closed eyes to peer down at the new serpent to the nest. The redhead opened the other when he realized who it was with his head soon flying straight up to attention. "Jin?" He wondered as he remembered his name quite well from hearing it about the aligning nesting sites. "What is the matter?"

"You have to come quickly!" Jin responded in labored breaths as he watched the alpha male crawl down the slightly mountainous terrain in the area where his nesting place was. "Silver was attacked by one of the knights and is badly hurt!"

Those in the nest near Kurama gazed up at him, wondering what he was going to do. He pushed himself up on his serpent half before making it down before Jin. "Show me where she is," he demanded in demonic.

Dustin had heard the commotion going on causing him to surface with Aland and Finlay behind him. His mouth slightly parted in wonder of what was causing the ruckus, he raised a brow slightly to try and see over the majority of wind serpents that had gathered in a protective circle. Tilting his head to the side in wonder, he heard Aland ask, "What is going on?"

"I smell blood," Finlay remarked with a slight hiss at the scent, recoiling his serpent half. "Somebody is hurt." His black, white, and gray scales rubbed against one another as he watched from a comfortable distance as the other demon serpents were new to him still.

"Move! Get out of the way!" one of the serpent demons from the wind nest demanded as he saw Kurama coming into view. "Let him through!"

Kurama got quickly through the crowd to find Silver lying there breathing heavily in her pain she was enduring. Bringing his hands down slowly to her body, he rested them upon her side that was soaked in a bit of blood and dirt that had clung to her in Jin's attempt to drag her back to the nesting site. He felt her tense under his hands. "Shhh, I am not going to harm you, small one." Closing his eyes and creasing his brow into concentration, he began to gather the energy he had to focus on healing her wounds she had been given.

Touya came into view to see what was going on behind Dustin and the others. His narrow eyes squinting to see better, he noticed that a good bit of energy was resonating from the earth about them causing some of the plants and the land about the demon to renew. A green life force seemed to pull from the greenery that had been transformed to dance and weave about the female, lying there in pain. Her hectic breathing of agony seemed to steadily come down the more it continued. The ice demon's eyes widened at seeing the wounds magically disappear and the skin to repair itself. _He has powers of his own too._

Opening his eyes, Kurama pulled his hands back to try and recollect himself. "She should really rest," he advised to Beldon, eyeing the alpha with his piercing green eyes. "She will be better in no time. Do not worry about her now." Kurama felt the eyes of the wind master upon him, prompting him to look over at the slightly surprised wind demon at seeing the other redhead's powers.

Jin's elfin ears moved slightly forwards as if to catch the whispers he could hear hissing about dealing with him and Silver. It was at that moment he felt as though he were in trouble, causing him to recoil back as if to protect himself. "I am sorry," he whimpered slightly, not expecting this to happen.

"**YOU**!" Beldon growled angrily, slithering quickly towards him with is fists clenched at his sides. "It is because of you taking her into human territory she nearly died!"

Dustin's face broke into panic as he saw the alpha male heading for someone from his nest. Hurrying towards Jin, he managed to get in front of the redhead before Beldon could make it to his charge. "Don't touch him! He's not part of your nest!" He growled angrily with a hiss.

"Get out of my way!" Beldon demanded in return with a snap at Dustin's neck. "That careless creature nearly got my daughter killed when I entrusted her to him!"

"Stop it!" Kurama growled from where he stood. "I know Jin wouldn't do this intentionally as he got injured himself trying to just feed her!" He shook his head at the two senselessly fighting over something that could have ended much worse. "He didn't mean for it to happen. Knowing him, he probably did what he could to save her."

"Beldon, I am sorry!" Jin intruded during Kurama's speech to save him. "I didn't mean for her to get hurt! I even advised that she not come after me last night, but she insisted. I am sorry!"

Dustin looked over his shoulder briefly at Jin before turning his focus back at the defensive Beldon. He was waiting to see what the wind nest alpha would do as he was fearful that Jin wouldn't be able to defend himself against any attack laid on him considering his injury he sustained from the knights as well. "Did you ever think that your daughter was so taken to him that she would even follow him into human territory? Jin did nothing wrong!" He hissed in the wind master's stand.

Beldon snorted through his nostrils, crossing his arms over his bare chest. "All I can say is if anything happens to my daughter, I am holding him responsible for it." With that said, he turned around to check on his daughter once more with his nest.

Kurama stayed to protect Jin as well, knowing the younger demon meant no harm. Turning to Dustin and Jin, he smiled sweetly to the two in hopes of relaxing them both as he witnessed Dustin tense up a bit in case he was going to do anything. "Do not worry about Beldon. He is just very protective of his daughters as most can be, and with Silver being his youngest, he is most protective of her."

"I sympathize for him," Dustin explained as Jin remained behind him, "but it wasn't Jin's fault Silver wanted to follow him. Even I've learned by now not to follow the airhead around, or I'll get skinned with him!"

Puffing out his cheeks at that comment, Jin growled a bit in his throat.

Kurama chuckled lightly to himself at that notion. "I guess then the fool is the one who follows him around, right?" Looking over his shoulder at that thought to see Silver lying there to recover, he lidded his eyes in thought. "Of course, Silver was a love-sick fool. However," Kurama began as he turned back towards the two, "you must be careful as to where you go, Jin. I understand that you have many dedications to many different people, but you cannot fulfill them if you yourself get killed."

Jin was a bit caught off guard by what the other redhead had to say to him. The way he expressed his words was almost as if he was insinuating he knew something. "What…?"

The earth demon turned his head to the side, allowing some of his hair to fall into his face though he gazed at Jin out of the corner of his green eyes with a bit of a smirk. "The earth tells me many things. Just be cautious. You could be endangering more than you know."

Finlay raised a brow to that as well, curious as to what the stranger meant by that as the earth serpent slithered back towards his nesting area. "What was that all about? What did he mean by that?"

Jin didn't want to overanalyze it himself as he looked up at Dustin when he slithered nervously to his alpha's side. "Thanks, Dustin."

Dustin's face broke into annoyance as he reared the closest hand to Jin back to whack him on the back of the head. The shock of it caused Jin to fall forwards as he wasn't expecting to get hit by his alpha. "The only reason I did that was so I could spare Beldon from hitting some sense into you, and I could do it!" He growled angrily, showing off his fangs. "What is wrong with you!"

Rubbing the back of his head, Jin grumbled a bit with a hiss at the pain he was being put through. "Dustin, I am sorry! I didn't expect that knight to come around when he did!" He apologized, bringing his hands up to his head to prevent from being hit again.

He grabbed onto Jin's neck as if to keep him pinned down. "I want to know what is going on, and I want to know now! What have you been doing! Tell me!"

"Dustin!" Touya panicked, watching the two tussle a bit.

Jin swallowed hard against Dustin's threats and what he would think about what he may say. "D-Dustin…please!" He pleaded, wrapping his hands about the alpha's wrist. Sighing through his nostrils, he lowered his ears and closed his eyes to show he knew he was going to regret what he was about to say. "I'll tell you if you let me tell you without Finlay, Touya, or Aland nearby."

The leader of the small clan raised his brow at Jin wondering what he was about to say. "Finlay, get Aland and Touya out of here so I can talk to Jin." Finlay was always trusted as Dustin's second in command as he was old enough and reliable as well. When he didn't feel Finlay was acting fast enough, he turned his head and snapped at him angrily. "**NOW**!"

Finlay turned to the other demons in the group, nudging them away from the two. "Come on. Let's leave them be." Aland didn't have problems doing as he was told, but Touya didn't want anything to happen to his friend. Witnessing Touya's resistance, Finlay frowned as he raised up on his serpent half to try and intimidate the smaller demon. "Touya," he hissed irritably with a slip of his forked tongue.

Touya backed down at Finlay's taller and bigger form, forced to scoot away as the second in command urged him to. He managed to catch a glance into Jin's eyes over Finlay's muscular shoulders. Shaking his head eagerly, he tried to express in his stance then and there not to tell Dustin anything dealing with the human children he was taking care of. _Don't do it! _He practically urged mentally to himself.

Jin caught Touya's movements for a second before looking away with a heavy sigh. He knew he couldn't keep hiding what he was doing from his alpha much longer. The serpent demon felt he was lying to his leader, and he couldn't take the thought of doing that any longer. "Dustin…I am sorry….but…." Jin paused a moment as he brought his fingers in close to a fist. "When I was in that barn fire back at the farm…I held onto the human mother and watched her die in my arms. During that time, she asked me to watch over her two daughters…and I have…"

Dustin's heart nearly stopped beating at that moment. "So, you've been running back and forth…over some _**HUMAN**_ woman's promise!" His nails seemed to dig a bit more into Jin's neck, piercing his skin and causing him to weaken a bit. Dustin listened as Jin released a shaky cry of dismay—it phased him very little to hear it. "How could you do this to me, Jin, and behind my back no less!" Baring his fangs angrily and hissing still to show he may bite or attack Jin soon, he stopped for a second upon hearing the sobbing the redhead was doing.

"Dustin, please! I am sorry!" Jin sobbed as he covered his eyes with his arms crossing over his face. "I am so, so sorry…! I didn't mean for this to happen!"

Narrowing his eyes at Jin's apology, Dustin used the rest of his nails to pierce the skin of Jin's neck. The numbing poison overwhelmed the younger serpent demon's body, Jin soon passed out from the alpha overpowering him. When Dustin felt Jin no longer resisting him, he released his grasp on the demon. Picking him up in his arms, Dustin gazed down at the paralyzed serpent demon. "You're not going anywhere for awhile. You're staying in my care, whether you like it or not."

--

Thane moved to the room he was allowed to be in to change to remove his shirt to get to his wounds that Silver had inflicted upon him earlier. Sitting on the side of the bed in nothing but his pants, he raised his right arm a bit to look at his injured side. "That beast sure did put up a fight," he grunted at the pain his side was giving him. "But that sure was odd—I don't know many female snake demons to expose themselves like that in the presence of a knight."

After finishing her morning chores, Blythe made her way up the stairs with Neda's lunch in her hands. She happened to glance over at the light coming from her parent's old bedroom. Twisting her mouth to the side to think, she looked off towards Neda's and her room as well. _He was injured a bit_, Blythe thought as she took one step towards her parent's bedroom. _I guess I can give this to Neda later. It isn't like she will be going anywhere any time soon._

Walking up to the door Thane was on the opposite side of, Blythe hesitantly knocked on it to introduce herself. "Thane, it is me, Blythe." When the knight didn't say anything, she tapped her fingers a bit nervously on the tray in her hands. "I noticed you were bleeding a bit when I came down this morning. Are you okay?"

The knight was listening to what Blythe was saying to him, but he didn't want to open the door and worry her. Lowering his arm, he placed it upon his thigh to gaze up at the door. "Come in. the door is open."

Opening the door as Thane asked, Blythe stepped inside to find the young knight in nothing but his woolen pants. She had never seen a man shirtless causing her to blush a bright red. "Umm-oh-I-I am sorry," Blythe apologized as she averted her attention off to the side.

Looking up at her, his dusty blond hair waved slightly as he smiled at Blythe with his blue eyes. "I am sorry. I forget that you may not have seen this most of me exposed before, but I promise my chest won't bite you." He saw the tray in Blythe's hands before she placed it on the open space on the floor near the door. "For Neda, I imagine?"

Blythe nodded at his observation. "Yeah, she did eat a little of her breakfast, but she does need to eat her lunch too." She nervously made it over to Thane to see some of the scrapes and blooded areas he had covered up in private though some were still uncovered. "I never got to ask you who or what did that to you this morning."

Thane got more of the bandages he usually carried around with him out of the sack he had with him. Cutting off some of it, he began to wrap up his side to conceal the wound there. "It was just some serpent demon that was trying to get the hens earlier this morning when I was coming here." Thane grunted a bit when he hit a tender area just by wrapping himself. "It was a female, but her companion showed up and stopped me from killing her." He raised his brows slightly upon finishing dressing his wounds. "I guess I felt pity and let them go even if I nearly had the female."

Joining Thane on the end of the bed, Blythe sidewise smiled briefly at his comment. "I guess an eye for an eye wouldn't help things, would it?"

The knight chuckled at Blythe's words. "Well, I know it wouldn't do anybody any good." He stared straight ahead at the mirror as if just to stare past his reflection. Sniffling a bit to clear his sinuses, he shifted his sight down at the ground. "I know killing either of them won't return either of our parents to us, and killing one would only get more demons around here. I guess it was a good thing I was stopped."

Blythe finally had the ability to look at him without much of a blush this time. However she was a bit nervous when it came to touching his muscular arm, which was closest to her. She watched as he turned his head to look down upon her, prompting her to shyly gaze away for a second. Thane seemed to edge closer to her with his face before nuzzling tenderly into her forehead with the slope of his nose. Blythe closed her eyes with a smile before wrapping her arms about his shoulders cautiously as he was injured about the area.

Thane smiled in return though grunted as well at having his injuries accidentally brushed by her. He reached up to hold onto her wrists to pull them away from where they were, but brought them to his lips to kiss the back of her hands. "I think Neda might want that lunch now," he whispered with a brief chuckle. "Besides, I wouldn't want to introduce you into this so soon; especially with me injured."

"You're right," the young farm girl said in return. "Besides, we should celebrate her birthday at the very least too, right? Are you awake and okay enough to celebrate it for a moment or two?"

"I have enough energy in me for that," Thane chuckled as he reached for another shirt he wore on his off times that was short-sleeved tunic in forest green colors but with some brown embroidery. "Come, let's get Lily and say happy birthday to Neda."

Neda was resting on her side while watching the sun shine through her window she was close to. She had little desire to even look over her shoulder when she heard the door open. Knowing it could be any of the three to come badger her, Neda just sighed a bit through her nostrils but tried to make it evident enough that they wouldn't bother her.

Lily looked over towards where Thane and Blythe were standing to extend her hand a bit in hopes the elder sister could guide her through the room. When she felt Blythe's hand about hers, she followed behind her to Neda's bedside to kneel down beside it. "Neda, we have something to give to you," Lily insisted with a smile, shaking her gently.

Wondering what they could possibly want, the younger sister turned around to see the three standing in her room and Thane coming over with the birthday cake Lily had made earlier in the morning before lying down to nap for a moment or two. "What-what is this?" She wondered, sitting upright in bed with her hair slightly messy from not combing it at all that day.

Keeping her gifts on the floorboards, Lily pushed herself up and onto the bed to sit near Neda. "I am sure you haven't forgotten your own birthday," she said with a smile, staring off slightly past Neda. "We wanted to wish you a happy birthday, sweetheart."

Thane made his way over towards the young girl with the cake in his hands still. "You don't have to eat much, but I think Lily would be offended if you didn't have at least a small bite."

Shaking her head at the knight, Lily smiled as she playfully knocked the back of her hand against his chest once she found it. "Don't mind him. I won't be offended in the least. By the way—," Lily raised her finger to tell her to wait a moment as she bent over the bed to grab the gift Jin had chosen for her. "This was a gift from one of the guardians your mother and father asked to watch over you two."

Neda looked at the strange box handed to her, curious as to what it was. Finding the latch on it, she unlatched it to open it up and find the phoenix spinning about to a melody that nobody knew the lyrics to. "What is this?" She wondered with hidden excitement. "It is pretty."

"The woman called it a music box," Lily answered as the song filled her ears. "He found it at a local seller last night in the market place and thought you may enjoy it."

Watching the phoenix continue to dance, Neda eventually closed the box before placing it on her nightstand. "It's-very pretty," she admitted.

"He told me to tell you happy birthday and that he will continue to make sure you and your sister have a wonderful life here," Lily continued with a slight nod. "He is sorry that you cannot really see him, but he does come in to check on you both when you're sleeping; especially you, Neda."

Neda blinked a bit with a bewildered look upon her face. "Why me…?"

Lily carefully reached out into the darkness to search for Neda's cheeks to rest her hands there. "It is because he knows what trouble you are in, and he is very, _**very**_ sorry it happened." She was hoping the way she stressed 'very' wouldn't cause anybody to raise a brow as to why. "Just know that he's watching over the both of you and trying everything he can to make sure you're both okay and safe from harm."

Biting her lower lip to prevent it from trembling, Neda looked up at Lily with a shrug as tears rimmed her eyes. "I really miss my parents," she admitted somberly. Spontaneously, Neda reached for Lily and hugged her tightly.

Blinking with confusion at Neda's sudden desire to be hugged by her, Lily held the upset Neda in return. "I know you do, young one. Do not worry, things will get better. I promise you that." Resting her chin upon Neda's head, she closes her eyes for a moment to help settle the Cormac girl. "Your parents will always be there with you whether you can see them or not. Just know that they love you too much to walk this path alone and will be there for you when you need them." Feeling the sun on her skin, Lily shifted her cloudy eyes over at the window for a second. _I wish there was an easier way for Jin to be here to comfort her. If only he wasn't a demon…_

Back at the forest lands where the serpents were resting, Jin was still out cold no thanks to Dustin's dose into his body. His fingers finally twitching a bit to show he was getting some response back into them, his eyes blinking open next. Moaning softly from the slight stiffness he was feeling, he only moved an inch off of the ground to have weight come down on top of him to keep him where he was on the ground.

Dustin was sitting upon his serpent half with his arms crossed upon his chest with an irritable glare. "You're not going anywhere while I am here with you," he insisted angrily. His lower serpent half was weighing down upon Jin's back to keep him where he was. "I am not going to let your recklessness get yourself or anybody else killed!"

Jin looked up sadly at Dustin and almost pleadingly. "Dustin…don't do this to me, please! I promised her! I promised Pearl I would watch over her kids no matter what!"

A growl rumbled in Dustin's throat at Jin's words. "Do you want me to bite you or numb you again?" The words didn't seem to sink in as he felt Jin's body flexing under him as if to try and rise up again. Lowering his head, Dustin bit at the exposed, scaly skin of the naga beneath him. "Stop it!"

Flinching from the bite, Jin trembled a bit in a submissive way with his ears faltered. "But, I need to get up to check on Silver too! You wouldn't deny me that, would you?"

Twisting his mouth to the side, Dustin grumbled a bit at the truth behind that. "Fine. I'll let you go see her, but if I find out you've detoured from your path, I'll punish you by sending you back to your brother!" As soon as he said that, he felt Jin's arms wrap about his body. Looking down at the younger charge of his, he saw Jin holding onto him for dear life as if begging not to be turned away.

Jin nuzzled his forehead, careful of his horn, against Dustin's abdomen. "Please, please, please don't do that…! I am trying so hard to please everyone at one time, and it has gotten me into trouble!" His eyes running over in tears, he had not the courage to look into Dustin's eyes, so Jin just embraced him tighter. "If you would just let me tie up some loose ends here, I won't bother with the human girls again unless they travel into our territory. Can you not allow me to do this one thing?"

"Jin, you've done many things I am not proud of," Dustin admitted, looking away from the sobbing demon. "But talking to and protecting humans after you know what they did to my old clan is more than heartbreaking for me!" His eyes soon glaring down at Jin, he huffed through his nostrils. "But, fine—I will give you this one day to get everything in order and then I never, ever want to hear you've been around anymore humans!"

Feeling a bit of pressure lifted from that notion, Jin held onto Dustin still as a thank you. "Let me just meet with the blind woman, and I promise I won't be near the farm again!"

Grabbing onto the side of his neck that was still sensitive from being bit, Dustin put a bit of pressure on it. "You better, or I will make you pay for it."

--

Later in the night Thane went back to his post at Kalrune while Lily woke up to keep a watch out for Jin in case he stopped by. She found herself sitting outside on the porch to wait this time rather eagerly. After what happened in the morning, Lily was a bit fearful that Jin might not come back or was probably injured again in some way that she would have to help him back to the market place to be checked out once more. Hearing some of the bushes rustle and the horses sleeping outside without the barn being finished getting a bit uneasy, Lily turned her head slightly wondering who was out there. "Hello? Who is out there?" She wondered pushing herself up from the chair out front.

Pushing the bushes out of his way, Jin made his way towards the porch where he saw Lily sitting alone. "Lily, it is me," he whispered as he slithered cautiously forward while low to the ground. "Are you alone?"

"Yes, but what about you?" Lily wondered as she made her way carefully down the stairs to meet Jin halfway. "Are you okay?" Her hands graced the scaly cheeks of the serpent demon to feel that it was indeed him. "I heard what happened when it came to Thane. He didn't strike you any, did he?"

Jin grabbed onto her curious hands to hold them for a moment. "I am fine, Lily. Silver was not so lucky and got badly hurt….and that is why I am here." He could tell she wasn't looking as though she wanted to hear the news, but Jin knew there was no better way to do this. "My alpha has threatened to disown me and throw me back at my uncaring brother if he catches me here again." Jin sighed through his nostrils, holding onto her hands a bit tighter. "I cannot stop by anymore than I already have. If I get thrown out of the nest I am in…I could easily die alone."

Lily sighed sorrowfully at the news. "I am sorry about this, Jin. I didn't mean for you to get into trouble."

Thinking about Pearl and her husband, Jin moved away from Lily and towards the gravestone markers. He allowed the blind woman to hold onto his shoulder to follow him as he did so. Spying them soon enough, Jin stood there with his head lowered. "I am so sorry, Pearl," he whispered mostly to himself even though Lily too could hear him.

"Jin," Lily began with a tender smile, her fingers flexing slightly on his shoulder. "You did everything you could for them, and look what happened—Thane and myself are here now to help them both. It isn't like you failed. You found the help they needed." Holding onto Jin's scaly shoulders, she brought herself closer to his ear she could feel soon. "I am sure Pearl is happy now that her daughters have the proper help. Besides, it isn't like you can't continue to help them. If they happen to wander lost into the woods, you can always be their guardian there."

The snake demon managed a smile himself at the peace that thought brought to him. Looking at Lily, he reached up carefully to her cheek to stroke it with the side of his finger so as not to prick her skin and poison her body. "I am afraid I won't be around as much anymore. I hope things go well for you, Lily."

Her hands still on his shoulders, Lily moved in to embrace the demon. She slid her fingers down his back to hold onto him there. "I'll miss you, Jin," she whispered against the side of his neck. "I hope things go well for you too. Let me know if you ever need anything."

Jin pulled back from the embrace to kiss Lily upon the cheek. "Take care of things here for me. That is all I need for now." He knew that if he didn't get going soon enough, Jin would get in trouble by Dustin once more. Hesitantly he pulled away from the human woman till his fingers slipped from hers upon his hands sliding down her arm and to her palm. "I have to go. Goodbye, Lily."

Once his hand was gone from hers, Lily brought it back to her chest to just stare off into the darkness she could see. Backtracking to the house, she went up the stairs with her heart feeling quite heavy at having to say goodbye to the snake demon she had felt close to.


	21. Chapter 21

_**AN**_: Sex scene was deleted from this chapter. I tried to make it longer without it even being in there. =x Unedited is on MediaMiner for those interested.

---------

As Lily had said goodbye to Jin that night, she didn't notice that Thane had come home earlier than expected from his shift from Kalrune Village. The young, blond knight watched in shock as Lily seemed to communicate with the serpent demon without getting hurt. From where he was standing at the corner of the house, he couldn't hear that Jin was speaking in English, however. "She speaks with them like it is nothing at all—like he is human!" Thane said mostly to himself before looking over his shoulder at the armored horse he often rode upon. Grabbing onto the saddle horn and the back of the saddle, he threw his leg around the creature and pulled on the reins, intent to follow from a safe distance.

Jin didn't pay much attention to the sounds or smells that consumed the late night. With sorrow and guilt overwhelming his mind and heart, he ignored the armored knight stalking him on his way back to Kalrune's abandoned graveyard. Slithering his way past the many snake demons littering the area, the redhead made his way loyally back to Dustin's side as he had promised he would earlier.

Thane stopped just outside of the abandoned graveyard, shocked at the hissing sounds emitting from the darkness a few miles or so from his post in Kalrune Village. _My God, there are probably thousands of those beasts here! How could so many be here and nobody do anything about it! _Knowing his horse wouldn't buck or throw him, the young knight led the stallion quickly to the other side of the graveyard where he could see Jin was headed.

Dustin kept his arms across his chest as he slid his scaly body about to get tension from his serpent half. "I hope you're done with that silly farm as you promised me," remarked the alpha in their demonic tongue. "You're not to go back there—**EVER**! Do I make myself clear?"

Jin made his way over towards Touya to lie down at his friend's side. Crossing his arms underneath his chin, he sighed heavily. "I promise. I said what I could and left the farm."

Having his friend close by, Touya moved his sky-blue scales about to attempt to comfort Jin by resting the metallic serpent skin over his back. His icy touch gracing the redhead's wild hair, he looked down sadly at the upset wind demon. Touya knew that Dustin had his reasons for doing this, but he knew the change was going to be difficult for Jin.

"I don't see how you could possibly be so disappointed," Aland felt need to say as he too was basking in the cool night. "I mean, you have a woman to take care of here who is pregnant with your babies." His albino body was easiest to see out of all of them when it came to the spying knight off in the distance. "Why not go spend time with her?"

Dustin couldn't stand Jin continuing to mope about as he shook his brown hair irritably with a disgruntled huff. Turning around, his braided hair swung with his movements as he made it towards Aland and Finlay. "Aland, come with me to find food. Finlay, I want you to stay here and make sure these two troublemakers don't disobey me again."

Aland and Finlay both did as they were told by Dustin. Jin watched through his wild, red bangs as the two demons made their way out into the plains, knowing that stealing from a knight infested village was too dangerous. Finlay watched as well as they headed off into the darkness with a shrug to Jin's continued sadness. "He's right, you now. You shouldn't be so down when you have babies on the way. Why not focus on that and the nest you could make with that Silver girl?"

"I guess that is true," mutter Jin as he pushed himself up off of the floor. "Speaking of her, I should go see how she is doing. It was my fault she got injured after all."

Touya removed his hand from atop Jin's head to allow his friend to move freely. Before the wind master moved an inch forward, the ice master grabbed onto Jin's shoulders. "Don't be so upset. Things will work out." He looked reassuringly into the baby blue eyes of the redhead to at least get a nod from the wind demon before releasing him.

Thane stayed out of view and out of their smelling distance to keep an eye on things. "Who knew this many were here…!" Pulling on the reins, the young knight dismissed himself from the area to hurry back to the farm for the night.

The cold grass caressed Jin's serpent body as he made his way somberly towards the shack where Silver was still being kept for the time being. His hands leaning against the old woodwork, he pressed his ear to the front door to check on things before finally making it inside. The moonlight was the only thing that illuminated the dark room. Jin's sight was able to pierce through the darkness to find Silver lying there on the musty bed in attempts to recover. Making it to the bedside, he nuzzled into her cheek with a flick of his forked tongue. "Silver, are you awake?" He whispered between the two of them.

Silver moaned slightly as she flexed her fingers. "J-Jin?" She said softly in return, looking up at the large demon. "What…happened?"

Jin sighed as he nuzzled into her forehead. "It was my fault. You got really hurt by that knight on my behalf." He cupped her cheek with his hand to caress the scaly flesh with his thumb. "I am sorry. I didn't mean for that to happen." Jin managed a smile to her at the very least. "But I got you to Kurama in time, and he healed you."

"Thank the Great Drake for that," Silver breathed as she rested her cheek, soon enough, on Jin's chest to feel comfort in his embrace. As she continued to hold onto the demon, Silver could tell that the wind master was awfully melancholy. "Is something the matter? You appear terribly sad tonight…"

He knew if he told Silver about what happened, she would blame herself and feel awful for it. So Jin kept it to himself while shaking his head. "It is nothing. Do not worry about it, Silver." Placing a tender kiss upon her forehead, he nuzzled into the spot once more with a brief smile. "I am just relieved you're okay."

Silver remained close to the wind master, nuzzling into his chest still before flicking her tongue across his chest to cause the wind demon to tense up a moment and moan softly between the two of them. Her hands slid down his sides to feel every bit of him. "I hope I can put your mind at ease for the night for the very least."

Jin grabbed onto Silver's hands to prevent her from continuing even though he was enjoying it. "N-No, you need to rest…! I cannot do that with you now…!" He took a deep breath to try and regain control over himself as she was arousing him.

"Well, if I cannot strain myself, I can please you still," Silver insisted as she trailed her hands down his chest once more to his well-toned abdomen. She couldn't help but giggle at his confused expression as he twisted his open mouth to the side with his eyes a bit wide. "Here, let me show you."

-

"I am glad you enjoyed it." She breathed steadily herself as just tasting him nearly threw her into an orgasm fit. "I guess none of the females you knew at your old nest did that for you?"

Taking in a deep breath, Jin shook his head at her comment. "No, they knew how to do everything but that; they did pleasure me all the same." Remaining on his side, he patted the emptied space next to him to offer it to Silver. When she was soon resting beside him, Jin grinned to her, showing off his teeth while he moved his arm to rest upon her side. "But thank you. It did make me feel a bit better."

The injured Silver nuzzled under his chin with a tender smile. "I am glad I could help." She placed her hand on her swelling stomach thinking about her babies as well. "Hopefully someday soon I'll be able to make you further happy."

Jin continued to smile as he remained close to his mate. "You do that just fine as you are," he assured her as he closed his eyes to relax for the remainder of the night. "Get some sleep, Silver. Kurama said you needed it to recover completely from your ordeal." Sliding his serpent tail about hers, he made sure that he was close to his beloved to help remind himself of his other promise and pledge of taking care of Silver.

--------

The sun rising that following morning, Lily found herself just sitting lonely at the Cormac family's dinner table. Having to say goodbye to Jin was a lot more difficult for her than she realized. With the creaking of the stairs catching her attention, she looked over in the direction of the noise. "Thane?" She wondered as the steps held some sort of nervousness within them and force of that of a man.

Thane shook his head with a raise of his brown brow. "It is still incredible how you do that." The knight made his way cautiously over to the table as he still could remember that Lily was caught talking to that serpent demon. "So…what's wrong? You look like you were hit pretty hard with some bad news."

Lily sighed as she gazed off to the side thinking about Jin. "It-I just had to say goodbye to a close friend of mine last night. It was difficult for me to do." Realizing she had better make breakfast, she excused herself from the table to make her way over to the cabinets to look for what she needed. "I haven't known him all that long, but he was a nice friend to have around. Ever since my husband left me, I haven't had the pleasure of much company."

Hearing her story, Thane couldn't help but think of the serpent demon he saw Lily conversing with. He didn't want to jump to conclusions, but he had a feeling that the friend was that demon. "So who was this friend? I don't think I've seen him around the farm at all."

Grabbing a few eggs from the refrigerator, Lily paused for a moment wondering how to fill that gap. She looked back over her shoulder past Thane as her cloudy eyes weren't sure where he was at that moment. "Well, he was a friend who came around at night when you were off at work. It was a reason I chose to sleep down here. I never wanted to miss him when he was in the neighborhood and needed me."

Thane felt the clues were meshing together all too easily now as he twiddled his thumbs a bit. He wasn't too keen on beating around the bush and hiding what he saw, so he came out with it best he could. "Lily, would the friend happen to be the snake demon I saw you with last night?"

Her back turned at the moment, Lily couldn't help but drop the iron pot in her hands to cause it to clang upon the wooden floor beneath her. Her cloudy eyes wide, she froze completely in place not knowing how to answer what Thane had obviously witnessed when he came home unexpectedly earlier than usual. "You-you saw that…?" She asked nervously as Lily turned around once more to look towards Thane as she bent down to pick back up the pot she had carelessly dropped.

"I saw you talking to some serpent demon like it was nothing at all for you to talk in their demonic tongue!" Thane insisted in a high whisper so as not to alert the others in the house to the conversation. His tone almost made it seem as though he were mad and unforgiving in witnessing it, putting Lily on edge. Seeing her tense up in fright, Thane sighed. Closing his eyes to regain his composure, he sighed upwards to blow some of his straight, blond hair out of his way. "I couldn't see exactly what he looked like, but he wouldn't by any chance be that redheaded serpent demon I've seen around lately…would it?"

Lily shook her head several times as she held the pan close to her chest. "Please, please don't be irrational when I explain this…," the blind woman pleaded as she gazed down at the floor. "But, that demon was just fulfilling a promise of his to the young girls' mother who passed away." Sensing his confusion, she made her way back over to the dinning room table to stand there to explain. "He promised the mother that he would watch over her daughters for the accidental fire he caused. What the girls saw that night—they misunderstood it all." Lily closed her eyes, embracing herself as it was hard to explain it all on Jin's behalf to a knight who was used to slaying such beasts. "One night, he stumbled upon me in the market place and asked me for my help in caring for them."

Thane was silent throughout most of her explanation as he wasn't sure what to say. "I guess that explains why you're here," he finally voiced as he crossed his arms upon the wooden table.

"Yes, it is the main reason why I am here," Lily answered with a heavy sigh. "While you were away, he would come in to check on Neda and Blythe as he promised their mother he would. He understood that you had no desire whatsoever to get to know him or understand his purpose, so we kept it from you. When you attacked his mate, he was here in the house helping me arrange a few things for Neda's birthday. She was no doubt trying to distract you from coming inside to see us."

The knight still found most of her story hard to swallow. "And you speak the demonic language of those beasts?"

"No," Lily answered honestly. "I'd be lucky to be able to even pronounce one of their words correctly. He spoke English and could even read it rather well. He told me that some of the serpent demons can do such things, but it is rare."

"And you believe his words?" Thane seemed a bit more hostile this time at even suggest she be doing so considering what happened to his parents.

Lily's face became serious as she gazed in Thane's direction once more. "When you cannot use your eyes to trust the outward appearance of someone you happen upon, you listen to the one that really matters—you tend to listen to your heart." She placed her hand upon her chest where her heart was beating. "I know in my heart he wasn't lying when he said the things he did. He is a gentle and pure soul. If he weren't what he was, I would have tried to spend my life with him; I trusted him as much as I did and cared for him too."

Turning from Lily, Thane thought back on the moment he was attacking Silver and Jin arrived just in time to prevent him from killing off the wind demon's mate. "That moment I chased that female creature into the woods…he could have killed me, you know. I know when a male's mate is threatened like that, the male won't hesitate to kill whoever tries." His eyes found Lily's once more, his brow creased in wonderment of the redheaded demon's actions in their previous encounters. "And when I fought him off in Kalrune—it was as if he didn't want to fight me. He just stood there and said something in demonic to me as well as disarmed me. I know, now that I think on it, a normal demon wouldn't have done that. A normal one would have torn right into me without giving me a chance to attack."

"Maybe because he knew who you were," Lily pointed out with a tender smile. "He knew who you were, and didn't want to hurt you in anyway, because he promised the girls the best treatment. And speaking of them, you cannot tell them of this. Neda is still in a bit of shock over her parent's death and won't accept that a serpent demon is taking care of her." She couldn't help but remember the anger that overcame Neda when Lily insisted the grave markers were made by nagas. "So promise me that…"

Thane raised his hands slightly off of the table to show he would keep it to himself. "I won't," the knight voiced knowing she couldn't see his gesture. He watched as Lily turned her focus back on breakfast, hoping to finish it in time before the girls woke. "So he said goodbye to you, hu?"

"Well, once you injured his mate, he had no other alternative," Lily explained as she started the cooking fire. "He was ordered never to come back." She sighed somberly, getting to her feet as soon as she got the fire going. "Just like some people hate the naga, the naga have some who hate us humans. It is sad indeed." Lily cracked some of the eggshells too open upon the pan over the clay stove.

"Don't expect to change the world, Lily," Thane felt need to say as he grabbed one of the pieces of bread in the basket in the center of the table. Hearing one of the doors upstairs close, he glanced over his shoulder at the staircase to find Blythe coming down to join them. "Good morning, Blythe."

"Good morning," yawned the young girl as she made it down the steps to sit beside Thane at the table.

"By the way, Blythe, your stable will be completed today," Thane announced with a smile. "You'll be able to put all your horses and everything back into the barn. It should make things much easier for you and your animals now."

"Thank you, Thane for helping us with this. I still don't know where I would be without the both of you," Blythe felt need to point out again as she closed her eyes to say her own private thanks to the Great Phoenix. "I have to remember to go to the Great Phoenix's Temple sometime to say a proper thank you for all of this."

Thane smiled at Blythe's words as he nodded at her. "Well, I am off tonight. If you want, once I get up from sleeping, I can get us a ride into the market place to do so. Admitably, it has been some time since I last just went there to do a few errands and talk to the towns people."

"I guess the night shift at Kalrune kind of doesn't allow you to do that with everyone asleep." Blythe rested her cheek upon her knuckles with a subtle yawn, still tired after rolling out of bed. "I can only imagine how boring the night life can be."

"It isn't so boring for me," Thane insisted with a shake of his finger. He excused himself momentarily from the table to get some water to drink as well as the same for Blythe. Coming back to sit beside her, he gave her the other glass in his hand cautiously. "I prefer the night life most of the time. I know it can be dangerous with more demons and such running around, but that is what makes it interesting."

Blythe widened her eyes, blinking several times at his comment. "I cannot imagine being able to walk around in a constant state of fear." Hearing someone moving upstairs, the elder sister paused for a moment to gaze over her shoulder at the staircase to see Neda reluctantly heading downstairs rather slowly.

Everyone was a bit surprised to find her finally surfacing from her bedroom without being asked she do so. Lily could tell it was Neda given everyone's silence and how she was the only one left in the house. Turning around as well to greet the younger sister, she folded her hands in front of her apron. "Well, it is good of you to join us, Neda. Sit down, breakfast will be ready soon."

Neda made her way to the table with the other two, sitting down to clasp her necklace around her neck. It was made of the scales that Jin had constantly shed around the farm whenever he was within the area. "Thanks," she practically whispered to everyone, feeling a bit uncomfortable with all eyes on her.

"Ah, I see you finished that necklace of yours," Thane pointed out as he caught it glistening in the rising sun, which peeked through the window. "It looks very nice."

Spontaneously, the young girl placed her hand upon the necklace. "Thank you," she responded to the knight as the breakfast plates were soon placed in front of everyone.

Blythe cleared her throat as her meal was served to her. "So, Neda, do you feel up to coming to the market place with us later tonight? Thane is thinking of going there with me so we can go to the Great Phoenix's Temple."

Neda had hidden disdain for the Phoenix Goddess after her parents had been unexpectedly taken from her, but she knew throwing a fit about it wouldn't do anything other than make her feel weaker than she already was. "I guess…that would be okay," Neda reluctantly responded. She grabbed onto her fork to start poking at the eggs she had on her plate before finally eating some.

"Perfect," said Thane as he worked on some of his bacon. "Then once I catch a few hours of sleep, we will make our way to the market place. I might be able to do it once we put the animals back in the barn."

Neda couldn't bring herself to eat a lot. She swallowed what she could before looking out the window to catch the rising sun shining through the trees that were wet with dew. Sighing through her nostrils, she excused herself from the table after drinking a bit of her milk. "I am going to go back upstairs then for a bit."

Lily smiled softly at Neda's words. "Neda," she called over her shoulder upon the young Cormac sister making it past her. "Thank you for joining us this morning. We appreciate your company."

Standing at the staircase, Neda soaked in Lily's words. "You're-welcome," she whispered softly before heading up the wooden stairs to get back to her bedroom for the morning.

-

As Silver stirred in her slumber, she moaned softly with a blink of her eyes to find that most of her pain had disappeared. Rubbing her face, she looked beside her to find that Jin wasn't there once more. "Jin?" She wondered as she looked around the empty building. She was still worried over the wind demon concerning how upset he appeared the night before. "Jin, where are you?" Pushing herself off of the bed, she made her way to the door. "Jin, where—!" Upon opening the door, she found the redheaded demon within the center of the forest surrounding them. Slithering further out of the shack, she saw he was playing a rather unusual instrument of some kind. It held a rather high-pitched sound to it and was slender in appearance.

Jin didn't hear Silver calling to him before. He was too focused on the melody that he had to play out. Carefully he placed his fingers over the different holes within the wooden instrument, blowing into it as he did so to cause different pitches. His eyes closed to concentrate on what he was doing, Jin turned slightly from side to side as if he was charming himself. When he managed to hold the last note for some time, he stopped his playing and removed the item from his lips to gaze off into the sun rising. His elfin ears catching one of the twigs snapping, he turned to look over in Silver's direction. "Ah, you're awake. Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah, I am feeling okay." Her eyes couldn't help but gaze at the wooden object in Jin's hands that caused those beautiful notes. "What is that?"

"Oh, it is a flute," Jin answered as he handed it over to Silver. "I crafted it a long time ago after looking at a human instrument of the same kind." When Silver was done looking it over, he took it back into his care, heading back towards the shack.

"You seem to like a lot of bipedal things," Silver pointed out as she headed back with him. "If any of those things were caught around here, we'd be punished." She curled up outside of the door going into the rundown building they had decided to be together in. Silver wasn't feeling too particular about going back inside. She felt as though she hadn't seen the outside world in some time.

"Why? They are just harmless objects." Jin coiled his body up and around hers to protect her with his larger body. "Of course," he began with a sigh, "Dustin would do the same thing to me. He only let me keep the diary because I pleaded and all of that until he decided it would be okay. I also brought it with me from the east, so I guess a part of him thought it was only fair." Clearing his throat, he kept the flute close to his chest. "So, are you hungry? I can go get you something to eat."

Silver placed her hand upon her stomach, which was slightly swelling from all of the food she had been eating to help with her pregnancy. "Yes, I am quite hungry. I haven't eaten anything since I was last at that human place."

"Okay! Wait right here," Jin insisted as he slithered away from her towards the woods. "I'll be right back with something for you to eat."

Touya was basking in the sun with the rest of the small nest Dustin had under him when he could pick up Jin's scent suddenly. Opening his eyes, he raised his head to catch the serpent demon heading off once more from the nesting site. "Oh, no you don't!" He muttered mostly to himself, heading quickly after his friend. "And just where do you think you're going?"

Jin looked over at Touya with a raise of his brows. "I am just going to get food for Silver. Last I heard, I was allowed to do that."

"Yes, but where are you getting it?" Touya pried further as he struggled to keep up with his faster friend.

"I am just going to steal some chickens and things in the human town, and I will be back." Jin moved quickly through the woodlands around Kalrune before coming upon the town itself soon enough. He lied low on the grass, attempting to keep himself hidden in the daylight. "Trying to find food that doesn't aggressively kick or bite you is so difficult when the domesticated creatures do nicely. Not to mention, I don't have to go far to know where they are."

Touya crossed his arms in front of his pallid chest as he too was lying there in the grass next to the redhead. "You're incredibly lazy, Jin!" He hissed irritably. "One of these days that is going to get you in trouble! When it is daylight, we find our own food; we don't steal it from humans!"

"Fine!" Jin growled as he looked over at Touya with a shrug. "So what do you want me to do? These animals taste better than the wild ones."

The ice master waved his index and middle finger towards himself. "Come—this way." He turned to head back towards the woods to help Jin find what it was he was looking for. "Come on," Touya said once more when he saw Jin was resistant to follow behind him. "The food out here is just as good as theirs. I don't see how you can tell there is a difference beside the fact you hardly eat yourself lately." Turning around, he poked Jin in the chest. "You're getting too thin. If you don't watch it, Dustin will force-feed you, and I know how much you hate that."

There were times, growing up with Dustin, Jin refused to eat and had his depressed times. The alpha leader would then wrestle him to the ground and dominate him to try and get him to eat. If Jin ever refused, Dustin would prick his neck with the poisonous toxins in his nails to weaken his body to the point he would be fed in his relaxed and weakened state. Jin rubbed the spot Touya took care in poking with a clear of his throat. "Well, I just don't see much point in eating lately; especially after I was forced to say goodbye to Lily and the girls."

Touya sighed as he continued through the thick forest. "I am sorry that you had to say goodbye to them, but don't you think that they have enough help as it is? I am sure the human woman is pleased in the afterlife knowing her daughters are in the proper care."

"That's what Lily told me," Jin pointed out as he ducked under a low branch to continue following behind the ice demon. His scales rubbing against the rocky formations along the slight slope down to a small, trickling stream, he made it to the opposite side of the bank with a heavy sigh. "I guess I just cannot help but keep feeling bad about it."

Stopping for a moment, Touya turned around with his tail-tip touching underneath his chin as if to think on that comment with his arms across his chest once more. "Do you think maybe that is because you accidentally caused the fire that killed their parents?" He removed his tail slightly from his chin, curling it a bit in a small U shape. "That is called guilt, and you'll be feeling that one for some time." He turned back around to continue on his journey through the forests to find what he was looking for. "Although, you shouldn't feel bad as they have two people to care for them as their father and mother."

"Maybe so but…" Jin sighed as he rested his arms on one of the low limbs of a dead tree with his chin on top of them. "…one of the girls is slowly dying because of what I did. If she dies, then there is another death to add onto my list."

"Well, if that happens, Jin, there isn't much you can do about it," Touya felt need to say. "The only thing you can do is feed her, and seeing as Dustin forbids you from ever going to that farm again, I just don't see that happening."

Jin lowered his ears somberly having to be reminded of that until he realized that there was a loophole in there. "Wait, he said for me to never go to the _**farm**_ again, and I promised him I wouldn't unless they were in my territory." He watched as Touya stopped to gaze over at him appearing rather leery of where he was going with this. "And he never forbade you from doing anything, because you've only been there once or so."

"Jin, don't you dare…!" Touya growled as he raised his hands. Seeing it in his eyes, he shook his finger at the wind master several times while moving away from Jin's advances towards him. "**NO**! No, no, no, **NO**!" The sky-blue scaled serpent demanded not wanting to hear another word as he continued onwards.

"Please, Touya! Pleeeeeeeeease!" Jin begged as he managed to grab his friend's left arm to prevent him from continuing his movements away from him.

Touya huffed as he looked off in another direction only to feel Jin pulling his arm more to get his attention. "Get off of me!" He hissed trying to shake his arm free.

But Jin refused as he kept a tight grip on his friend's arm. He rested his forehead against Touya's upper arm, not having the courage to look him in the eyes as he begged in such a way. "Please, Touya," he whimpered. "It would be pointless for me to get this far only to lose one of them. Just tell Lily I will watch over Neda at my nest safely during the night, and you can bring her back in the morning." Seeing him about to protest once more, Jin continued. "She will eat in her sleep. I know she will! I don't have to worry about her waking up on me, because I can make her go back to sleep with my nails."

Sighing with a shake of his head, Touya managed to get his arm away from the redhead. "What am I going to do with you? Alright, alright," he finally decided. "I will go to the farm and talk to Lily about it."

"Thank you!" Jin praised as he felt at ease again. "I owe you for this."

"Yes—yes, you do," said Touya as the two of them headed west, the forest engulfing them.

Blythe checked on the completion of the barn with Thane in the mid-afternoon. The carpenters had managed to reconstruct it back to its full glory. "This is wonderful," the teen replied gleefully, pressing her hands together at the sight of it painted and everything. "It looks just how it used to." Turning to the knight, she expressed her thanks first with a smile and a tight hug. "Thank you so very much, Thane. Without you, I am not sure what would happen to most of our farm animals!"

Thane smiled down at Blythe, accepting the hug and praise as he held her close to his chest in return. "No need to thank me, Blythe. Now your animals can have their barn back. I'll go ahead and start guiding the pigs and some of the horses back in while you go wake Neda. I am sure she'll have a better reaction to you than to me when it comes to rousing her from slumber." Thane pocked his hands as he made his way to the corral where the animals were being holed up to guide some back into their stalls.

Her smile turning into a worried frown, Blythe shifted her attention back to the farmhouse before heading to the front door. Making her way inside, she found Lily was passed out on the sofa with her cat Tabby beside her and purring quite contently too. Heading up the staircase, Blythe knocked upon the door leading into her and Neda's bedroom. "Neda, may I come in?" She asked as she opened it slightly.

Neda was awake this time though just looking outside the window. "Sure," she said, turning her attention to her elder sibling.

"Wow, I didn't expect you to be awake at this time," Blythe said honestly as she made it to her sister's bedside. "So, are you feeling up to going to the market place with Thane and me?"

The messy beige hair that was in Neda's face was moved as she placed some of the strands behind her ears. "I guess so." Inwardly, she had to admit she was tired of just lying around the house. She wanted to get out and do something. She removed the blankets from her frail body and got to her feet. "I'll be ready soon. You can wait for me downstairs."

"O-Okay," said Blythe with a nod as she removed herself from their bedroom shortly after. She closed the door quietly behind her, keeping her back to it to smile mostly at her self and her sister's slow signs of recovery. _Thank the Goddess for that_, she thought to herself as she made her way back downstairs to help Thane with the animals.


	22. Chapter 22

_**Author's Notes**_: Sorry for the wait for so long. I have been sidetracked with a few personal things. Also the Sims2 kind of ate me up. x3;x I got addicted no thanks to a friend of mine. XD; I also might be working on a 7th month anniversary piece or something for me and my bf, so writing in general might be a bit slower.

Enjoy. 3

* * *

The hooves of the horses clopping against the soft earth, Thane escorted the brown and white steed back into the barn he had managed to get crafted for the Cormac sisters. The last of the creatures being guided in by Blythe, the knight placed his hands upon his hips. He appeared to be glad that was over with. "At least now they have some sort of shelter."

Blythe nodded in agreement as she helped shut and latch the barn door shut. "To have it rebuilt from the ashes as if nothing ever happened truly is wonderful." She swung her foot back and forth slightly with her hands behind her back, gazing down upon the ground seeing as she had a difficult time looking Thane directly in the eyes lately. "I am glad that you came to help us, Thane."

"You've thanked me enough as it is," Thane chuckled. He reached over to take Blythe's hand into his own when the young farm girl attempted to move her hands to her sides. Upon doing so, he was able to catch her eyes with his own. A tender smile graced his expression. "Now, I do believe we promised to have a fun time in the market, didn't we?"

Remembering her sister, Blythe turned back to the farm with a bit of a worried frown. "I just hope she meant it when she said she was going to come with us." She raised a finger to Thane. "Wait here, and I will go check on her." Picking up her dress slightly, Blythe hurried back towards the house. Opening the front door, she found Neda at the foot of the staircase in something other then her nightwear. "Oh, so you are up."

Neda nodded, brushing the front of her cotton dress off with her hands. It was a white dress with blue trim. "Yes," she answered quietly. "I don't feel like sitting in my bedroom today." Neda walked towards the front door, touching the scale necklace she made that she had on today as well.

Following her sister outside, she realized in the warm clothing Neda wore, her sister looked extremely pale and skinny. Blythe felt more then worried for her sibling, as she helped her down the stairs, afraid her small legs would break from under her considering how tiny and frail they appeared. She waved down Thane, who was getting two horses together at the very most for their travel into town. "We're ready whenever you are, Thane."

Thane kept the reins of the two horses held, making his way over to the two with a smile. "I will ride my own horse into town while you and Neda take this one." He handed the leather reins over to Blythe, helping her mount up first knowing she was older and probably knew how to handle a horse better then Neda, though didn't want to say anything to insult the younger sister. When it was Neda's turn, Thane turned to her with his hand open. He could see the look of scorn still upon her face regarding the fact she believed he was trying to take her sister from her. "I'll help you up, Neda. I promise I won't hurt you."

Sighing softly, Neda knew it wasn't the moment to delay time, given the bit of energy she was running on. Accepting Thane's offer, she helped herself upon the back of the horse her sister was upon. Her hands grabbed onto Blythe's sides to keep herself situated. Feeling a bit lethargic with just sitting down, she rested her cheek against Blythe's back.

Pulling upon the leather reins once he got upon his steed, Thane nodded off towards the dirt road, which would lead them into Eytheria Market Place. "Shall we?" The horse let out a mighty snort and shake of its head upon setting down the path.

The road to the market place was a quiet one minus a few breezes shaking the tree limbs and the sound of twittering birds. The clopping of the horses' hooves against the ground almost lulled Neda back to sleep until the sound of the drawbridge brought her back to her senses as well as the coming noise from beyond it. "Here so soon?" She asked aloud as the ride didn't appear that long at all.

"So soon?" Thane chuckled. "I guess being asleep through most of the ride is a plus." He turned his head just in time to not see Neda roll her eyes at his comment.

The market was alive per usual given the positioning of the setting sun. Everyone needed to get their shopping done before all of the stores closed for the day, so it was a big rush around this time. Watching, as the road led them to the temple Neda had come to despise after her parent's death. The horses stopping right before the large, white doors of the temple, Thane dismounted first before wandering over towards Blythe and Neda to help them down one by one. Neda kept her eyes upon the large, white place of worship not budging from where she stood once her feet hit the ground.

Blythe was quiet remembering the times Neda said cold things about the Great Phoenix Goddess. She allowed her sister to stare in an almost trance like state before breaking her of it. "Neda," she called with a snap of her fingers. "You feel comfortable with going inside, right?"

Neda knew, with being as young as she was, the market place was too big for her to wander alone by herself. Hesitantly, she nodded. "I'll be fine."

The doors of the temple opening, Thane made his way inside with the two farm girls behind him. Not many people walked the halls of the Great Phoenix Goddess. Some were sitting upon the prayer benches lining the main hall. Making it to a certain spot, Blythe sat down comfortably upon the cushioned bench. Thane turned to Neda to allow her to sit next to her sister if she wished to, only to see the young girl stand there to stare around the inner halls nervously. "Neda," he whispered to her, placing his hand upon her shoulder to snap her from her trance.

"I…I need some air…!" Neda insisted, pushing her way past the two and hurrying to another door, which she knew would lead her outside. The bright light of the sun overwhelming her at first, she brought her hands to her knees to try and regain her composure. Never had she felt so suffocated within the Great Phoenix's halls, but after the death of her parents, she just found the temple to be too much to be within. "I can't do this, I really can't," she mumbled, making her way over to one of the nearby trees, which was neatly trimmed.

"You can't what?" Asked a familiar voice.

Neda snapped to attention, pulling her hands to her body as a reflex, her eyes shifting over to just beyond the tree she was against to see that same winter elf who helped her to the market several days ago. "You seem in quite distress." The wind blew his long, white hair about as he planted a few things into the ground.

"I remember you…," said Neda as she pushed from the tree to get a better look at the elf.

"Really now?" Chuckled the young elf as he moved from where he was standing in the garden to the cobblestone walkway. "Do you remember my name?" Seeing her shake her head, he smirked to himself knowing that young children had selective memories at best. "My name is Nash Darwin, and you are one of the Cormac sisters."

"Neda," she answered simply in case he forgot as well. "So what are you doing back in town?"

"I spent most of my time here and there," answered Nash as he was working on a few flowers he had situated in his hands. "I help the priests here with the garden about the temple and look at some of the bounties on creatures for the sake of money. What about yourself?"

Neda watched closely as Nash paid little attention to what she was doing as he wandered about the garden still planting in the few bits of life he could. "My sister and her friend wanted to drag me here to praise the Goddess, but with everything that happened to my parents, I don't wish to speak to her at all." She crossed her arms over her chest. "I don't wish to ever come to terms with what she took from me."

Nash hid his smirk with his back turned to her, as he messed with the dirt to plant one of the flowers in his hands in a nearby spot. "Seldrua la dra sedren," he spoke foreignly.

"Excuse me?" Neda asked with a shake of her head.

"In my tongue it means 'forgive and forget' in the human language." Grunting, he shifted back to his feet, brushing off his baggy pants. He turned to Neda, knowing he probably said something she didn't want to even consider doing. "I know what happened to you was unjust and unfair, but the Gods have their ways." He used the plural term seeing as he worshipped a different being and didn't want to single either one out. "To hold onto such a grudge isn't healthy for you." Here he pointed at her. "You have lost a lot of weight from last I recall seeing you."

Neda never paid much attention to how much on how big or small she was. She shrugged off the comment feeling as though it were nothing to worry about. "I haven't been out of my bedroom lately. This is the first time I have been outside for some time now."

"Well, bless your heart," said Nash as he finished the last bit on the garden. Brushing his hands off again after being in the dirt, he smiled to the young girl. "Well, first and foremost, I do believe you at least deserve a decent meal." Nash wandered off towards the building for a moment to grab up his quiver and bow he left there for the time being. "If you don't mind me taking you into town for something to eat, that is."

Neda knew she had to get away from the Goddess' Temple no matter what. She nodded upon Nash's request. "It would be nice to eat something aside from the daily farm food."

Chuckling to himself, Nash headed out of the temple's gardens and back towards the front with the young farm girl behind him. "Well, I cannot say there is much variety about in Eytheria's Market Place, but I can see what we can find." Placing his middle and index fingers into his mouth, he whistles hard for his stallion he usually rode upon. The horse galloping towards him, Nash greeted the beast with a gentle pet to the nose. "I usually cook things I hunt, but I don't know if you'd like exotic meats too much. Besides, best to not make you eat things you're not used to with the condition you're in." He offered his hand to her to help Neda upon the tall stallion.

"I will be fine," she insisted, taking his hand to get on the front of the horse. "I just don't eat as much as I used to."

Grabbing onto the saddle, Nash hoisted himself onto the back of the horse, grabbing onto the reins to steer the creature into the busy stone streets. "Well, we'll see what we can possibly find that isn't too much like the food you're used to back at home. While I know that is a taste you are used to, maybe something more exotic will bring your appetite back."

Neda watched as the citizens within the market place passed them by on feet while Nash rode slowly around them. He took them to the very northeaster part of the town where Neda had never been before. Most of it consisted of some rather interesting shops, though they appeared to have quite a few expensive, handcrafted items on display. Everything appeared to be quite high-class in appearance. "Where are we?" Neda wondered as the horse came to a stop at a descending, stone staircase.

Dismounting from his horse, Nash landed on his feet before turning around to help Neda down. He tried to be gentle with her knowing she could possibly bruise easily with how small she was. Helping her down the stairs, they made it to the local tavern in that area that was hidden almost out of sight. "This tavern manages to obtain more of the exotic types of food I spoke of earlier." His soft blue cape flaring out behind him as he hastened towards the door, Nash grabbed onto the doorknob to open it. "After you," he said quietly, taking his cloak to bring close to his chest to bow slightly.

Her eyes couldn't help but peek inside first before actually stepping foot into a new building all together. It was a very small, laidback looking scene. There was a bar up at the front with a few circular tables in the back of it with a curtain of red fabric cutting through another section of the tavern as if to hide another portion of the first room. Neda looked over her shoulder to find the elf walking behind her, making her relieved he didn't disappear and leave her all together. The chubby waiter behind the bar spotted the two coming in, greeting Nash with a smile and wave.

"I haven't seen you come in here for some time, Nash," said the man. He had a rather thick, brown beard about his face. Neda couldn't help but stare at it from time to time. "And I see you brought a friend, eh?"

Nash smiled honestly in return. It was the first time she had actually seen him present himself in such a way since they met. "I was surprised I ran into company as well." Here, he escorted Neda to one of the wooden seats in front of the bar. "I would like to have the usual, and I will let my friend try a bit herself if she desires it."

With a nod, the waiter put down the glasses he was cleaning and headed into the back to make whatever it was Nash suggested. Neda waited until the man was out of sight before speaking to the winter elf. "Who is he?"

"His name is Darwin," answered Nash as he folded his hands upon the bar's countertop. "He is an old friend of mine. I've known him for many years now, ever since he was a young thing." The waitress stopping by, dropping the two a glass of water for starters, the elf nodded at the young woman with a shake of his white tresses before grabbing his cup.

"Ever since he was…young? But you look young as well," Neda said rather bluntly. From the look of the elf, he looked to be in his twenties at most.

Nash couldn't help but laugh a bit loudly at her comment regarding his appearance. "Well, us elves are known to live for some time." He winked at her, his fingers tapping upon the clear glass before him filled with water. "While I may look young to you humans, I am actually 520 years old."

Neda was attempting to have a drink when he spilled this news to her. She nearly choked on her water, causing her to cough a few times. "How can you be that old! That isn't possible!" She exclaimed in wonder.

"Elves live longer then humans," Nash explained, patting Neda on the back to help her get her coughing under control. "The oldest man in our village is almost 10,000 years old." The door opening and Darwin coming up front from the back, Nash regained his composure a bit and accepted the large plate of food.

"Maybe this will put a bit more into ya!" Darwin insisted with a chuckle, giving the plate to Nash, so he could decide what to do with it.

Accepting the plate, Nash showed the exotic, white rice with a few steamed vegetables and seasoned meat lining the plate. "Now, let's see how you like some of this." Giving her a fork, he pointed to the vegetables and rice. "I am not sure how you eat vegetables back on the farm, but they are steamed over a fire and seasoned. You might come to like them."

"What about this?" Neda asked, pointing at the white rice. "I have never seen that before."

"This is rice from the east," explained Nash as he moved some over towards her. "It is a rare find and rather expensive at that."

Neda took some of the pieces upon her fork to have a taste. Even if it was bland at first, she still took a liking to it. "That's not so bad, I suppose."

Nash moved the nearest sauce towards her. "Try putting something on it. You may end up liking it more." Pausing for a moment, his expression became serious as he turned his head to look over his shoulder as if something was there. His elfin ears twitched to the sound of Neda's name being called beyond the walls they were within.

Catching his actions, the young farm girl gazed up at Nash before trying to figure out what it was he was looking at. "What is wrong? You looked like something is the matter."

"Someone is calling for you," said the winter elf before turning to Neda to help her to her feet. "Did you come with someone this time? You did say you did earlier, yes?"

Neda blinked a few times confused, as she couldn't hear anything. "Yes, I did come with my older sister and Thane." Having to even say his name made her heart twist a bit in pain, but she tried her best not to express it so quickly. Before anything else could be said, the tavern's door opened to reveal the young knight. Witnessing him there before her, Neda turned to look the other way, not wishing to stare at him completely.

"Neda, so this is where you ran off to," said Thane as he made his way over towards her only to stop midway. He knew coming any closer might cause her to get angry at him, and Thane didn't wish to cause a scene. "Who are you?" He asked looking at the winter elf now.

Nash realized he was being spoken to, causing him to chuckle briefly. "Forgive me, my name is Nash Darwin." He bowed slightly to show some respect to the fellow human knight, though he kept his distance just in case. Nash was aware not many knights were open-minded about foreign races within the walls of Eytheria. "I just happen to know who Neda was, and I ran into her outside of the temple. I didn't think it was any harm to take her about the market place."

His eyes focused on Nash long and hard before turning his attention to the young Cormac girl. "Neda, your sister has been looking for you," Thane explained, ignoring the winter elf for the time being. "She is right outside. Why don't you go and see her?"

Seeing the way the knight presented himself, Nash could tell that he was a bit nervous with the company nearby. He merely studied Thane from where he stood, as the man in iron refused to look at him. Catching the suggestion, however, he turned to Neda and gave her a friendly smile. "It is best to make sure your sibling isn't worrying too much over you."

Neda was resistant to do so, but knew that Blythe was probably worried sick about her. Nodding to Nash, she waved goodbye to him as she sidestepped Thane and made her way outside to find her elder sibling.

With Neda no longer within the area, Nash turned back to Thane with a raise of his thin, white brow. "You appear rather shaken for a knight. What could possibly have someone like you worried?"

Thane knew all about the winter elf race, as every now and then they would come into town. They were rare to see, but he knew them from reading about their lore written within books. "It is nothing too important," Thane lied as he made his way over to one of the tables to have a seat. Blythe had told him earlier she wanted to have a moment with her sister, so he found it the perfect time to sit and meet with the rest of his night crew friends, who were out and about at this point and time. "Just a lot of thoughts running through my mind," he mostly mumbled, bringing his hands together upon the wooden table. "I guess I am having a hard time deciphering what I should be doing."

Turning to the side, Nash unknowingly put his hand upon the small sword he kept on his right hip. "Sounds from the tone of your voice, it is rather personal." The reverberation of iron getting louder from the outside, the elf knew that more of the man's friends were coming to join him. "If I were you, I'd watch what you say around some people," Nash advised before heading out of the tavern himself.

Even though he wasn't too trusting of the stranger, he knew Nash was right. When the door opened, again he saw some of his fellow friends coming inside. They were chatting with one another and laughing a good bit about whatever it was they were conversing about, causing Thane to raise his hand and call them over to where he was sitting. "Kale, Esmond, Milton," he said to each knight friend he knew, greeting them with a handshake. "It is good to see you all again."

"Aye, it has been awhile," said Kale as he sat next to Thane about the round, wooden table. "How have things been? Even being on the same nightshift as you, sometimes I rarely even come across you!"

"Yeah, I've had some things to take care of as well as think over," Thane admitted with a soft chuckle, to hide the seriousness best he could.

"How have things been going with you and that demon serpent?" Esmond asked, seeing as he had heard the stories about the demon messing with the Cormac Farm.

The beers given to the young men, Thane took his and brought it close to him. He didn't bother with a drink like the others. The thoughts running in his mind were too overwhelming at that moment. "Things have been interesting, to say the least. I was told some odd information about him."

"Information?" Kale wondered with a raise of his brow. "Exactly who would know information about those beasts?"

"I won't say names," Thane insisted, not wishing to call Lily out on it. "But I will say that he seems…almost human." His friends silent, he knew he was setting himself up for criticisms, as nobody was all too intent to feel demons had any human characteristics. "And I followed him to his nest one night, and I found thousands of them behind Kalrune Village…"

Everyone at the table looked at one another in silent shock. Hearing that there were thousands of these demons not too far from most of their post startled the knights. "You said 'thousands'?" Milton pried, as he moved in closer to the conversation from where he was sitting across from Thane. "How could there possibly be that many so close to a village we all patrol?"

"Where were they located?" Kale demanded to know eagerly.

Thane shrugged slightly, thinking on the location through his racy thoughts. He saw no harm in telling his friends at that point in time. "I guess they were in the abandoned graveyard area of Kalrune. Nobody really goes back there, so no wonder nobody really noticed them or said anything about it."

"Unless those who have seen it never lived to say anything," Esmond mumbled before bringing his beer to his lips.

"Esmond," Thane said in a stern tone, as if to silence his friend from continuing. He didn't want the knights to get any ideas about the situation, as he found it completely harmless for the time being. "I say if the serpent demons haven't attacked the village in their full numbers, they obviously mean no harm." Thane was thinking about what Lily said regarding the serpent demon she had been speaking to.

Esmond shook his coal black hair with an irritable grunt. "I don't know when you became such a forgiving man to them considering all that they've done lately."

"Esmond!" Kale scolded this time.

The knight turned a cold shoulder to Kale with a 'humph'. "I say if one of those beasts comes within inches of that village, we kill and skin it." His armored hand met hard with the table in the form of a fist, causing the table to tremble and the glasses clank. "If they want to bring more onto us, I don't care! I know we have enough to take them all on!"

Hearing Kale slightly agree and Milton strongly, Thane looked away, letting the knights cheer at this moment. If anything, he was beginning to see exactly what Lily meant when she said most of the human race was a bit on the narrow-minded side. He may have had distaste for serpent demons, but he knew it was unwise to go looking for trouble unless it came looking for you.

--

With the moon coming into view, Thane and the others returned back to the farm. Everyone was silent on the way back. The knight continued to think on what all happened back at the tavern. He didn't wish to say anything about it considering Neda's dislike for the serpent demons already for what they did to her parents. With the Cormac Farm coming into view, he got his horse to come to a halt before dismounting to help the others as he usually did.

"Come, Neda,' began Blythe, as she helped her sister to the front of the house. "We should get cleaned up before bed." Upon making it to the beginning of the staircase, she stopped when she heard the rocking chair out front creek. Her eyes catching the sight of Lily sitting in the chair, it nearly startled her seeing as it was late and difficult for her to see at night. "My goodness!" Blythe gasped suddenly with her hand to her chest. "You frightened me, Miss. Lily!"

Lily kept her clouded eyes gazing out in front of her, though she smiled and nodded at hearing the others had returned. "I am sorry. I didn't mean to startle you." She could hear the porch boards moan underneath the weight exerted upon them as Neda and Blythe both made their way up towards her. "I thought, after dinner, I would come outside and just listen to the sounds of night. They sometimes help me sleep."

"You're not afraid something may come out of nowhere and eat you?" Thane remarked as he eventually made his way up the stairs too after putting the two horses in the barn.

"Not in the least," she chuckled, continuing to rock contently back and forth. "Besides, I will take my chances." With Blythe escorting Neda inside of the house, Thane remained where he stood with the wooden door closed in front of him. Lily could sense someone was still there, causing her to tilt her head slightly. "Something wrong, Thane? I can sense you still there because of the faint smell of iron that always surrounds you even when you're out of your armor."

"I don't wish to think too much on it," Thane admitted quietly between them. "Thanks for your concern though." Sighing heavily, he went inside of the house to get ready for his night shift down at Kalrune Village, hoping the guys had forgotten about what he had said prior.

With the nightlife back to herself for the time being, before Thane was to leave, Lily relaxed in the wood, carved rocking chair. It wasn't until she could hear the nearby rustling of the bushes did she pause in her rocking to listen closely. "Is someone there?" She asked quietly, wondering what could possibly be causing the bushes to rattle so much. Lily knew it couldn't be the wind. She could hear whatever it was getting closer to the house, prompting her to get a bit on edge. Everything was quiet for just a moment, before a familiar voice spoke to her.

"Lily," Touya whispered from just around the corner of the house. "It's me!"

"Touya?" Lily whispered in return, not sure if anyone inside of the house would be able to hear her. She didn't move from her rocking chair to make it obvious she was speaking to someone if Thane was to reemerge. "What are you doing back here? I thought Jin was forbidden from returning."

Touya sighed with a roll of his eyes. "If only Jin were so easy to contain. But I am here to talk about Neda." Here, he paused as his narrow eyes shifted about the porch. Smelling iron, he recoiled back. "That man is still here, isn't he?"

Lily nodded. "Thane is still here, so you have to wait until he leaves." Hearing the sounds coming from inside of the house, she waved in the direction of the serpent demon. "Quickly, hide!"

Ducking back into the bushes, Touya's eyes glistened off of the moonlight making them glow a bright, white color. Even though the smell of the iron irritated him to the point of wanting to hiss in defense, he tried to hold his tongue. He could hear as the knight spared a few words to Lily before heading out to his post in Kalrune. Touya listened carefully to the sound of the hooves of the horse trotting quickly down the dirt road behind the house. "Is he gone?" He asked, peeking out from around the house slightly.

"Yes, he is gone," said Lily as she let the snake demon come to where she was sitting. "Now, what is this about Jin and Neda?" She could hear him slithering closer to her with how his scaly body weighed down the wooden boards. She knew he was near soon enough, causing her to reach out her hand as if to find his. When she struggled to find it, she felt Touya's cold hands grace her soon enough.

"Seeing as Jin is forbidden from returning here, he wanted me to bring Neda back to the nest with him for the night while she sleeps," said Touya. He could catch the slight panic in Lily's blind eyes when he spoke of such a thing. "I know. It is very dangerous."

"If he's not careful, she could really be killed!" Lily insisted in a high whisper. "I understand Jin's desire to withhold his promise to the lady of this house, but it is unwise to take such a step. I doubt the naga race is accepting of humans, and they probably won't hesitate to kill one." Believing such a thing could happen made her tighten her grip within Touya's hands. "And I know Jin will probably be punished for such an act as well."

Even though she couldn't see him, Touya nodded at her comment. "They don't take too kindly to our kind talking to humans. If he is caught, he will be punished for it—meaning, he could either be killed or exiled."

"His kindness blinds him to what may happen to him and those around him," said Lily simply as she brought her hand to her chin to think on a solution. "Is there any way this can be done safely?"

"Possibly," Touya said after a period of silence to think on the question. "Where is she right now? I can put her to sleep myself if need be and carefully take her there."

Lily pointed to the left where she knew the door was. "She is inside, but I think she is getting ready for bed right now." Getting to her feet, she made her way over towards the font door with her hands stumbling upon the doorknob. "If you want, come with me but try to keep it quiet. The last thing we need is for you to be seen."

Cautiously, Touya snuck inside of the dark living and kitchen room. Only the moonlight lit up the slightly spacious area, causing his eyes to shine in the darkness, as he sniffed around to find his way about the objects. His sky-blue scales rubbed against the floorboards, causing them to moan underneath his bodyweight as he did so. "Human houses still put me on edge," he couldn't help but mumble honestly between them.

Getting to the staircase, he allowed Lily to go up first before following slowly behind her. Making it to the top of the stairs, the blind woman reached out to place her hand perfectly atop the wooden banister. She knew the girls' room was to the left of the stairs, making her tiptoe in that direction. Her hand upon the door, she turned to where Touya was with a finger to her lips. "Do not make a sound. I will let you know if they are both asleep. They just went to bed a few minutes ago, so I am not sure."

"I will wait here," said Touya with a nod, slinking back into the darkness of the house. He merely peaked around the corner to check inside of the room for a second just to see what was in there, as it smelled of humans, and his curiosity enticed him to do so.

Lily quietly made her way inside of the bedroom to listen to everything going on around her. She could hear that Blythe was quietly asleep for the time being—it could also be caught that the young farm girl was facing towards the wall while sleeping, as the breathing sound was a bit muffled. Finding her way to Neda's bedside, she placed her hand upon her shoulder just to see if Neda would wake in the least.

Feeling the hand upon her shoulder, the young farm girl didn't move at all. She was too tired from her lack of energy and actually spending some of it out on the town. Relieved that Neda didn't move, Lily picked her up into her arms, making sure at least the blanket was about her, before stepping out into the hallway where Touya was waiting for them both.

"She is still asleep, but be cautious when you take her back." Lily knelt down to be within range of the serpent demon, so he could take Neda from her. "You may need to make sure she remains asleep. She won't take too kindly to being taken away by your kind."

Touya took the young female into his arms to hold her close to his bare chest. "I will make sure of it," said the ice serpent as he thought upon his poison nails, which could numb her body back into sleep.

Lily made her way back down the stairs, opening the door to allow the snake demon outside into the darkness. "Just please be careful," she repeated nervously, her hands folded close to her chest with her blank eyes gazing out at nothing in particular. "I don't want anything to happen to anybody." She sighed to herself, looking away. "I just have this bad feeling…the tension in the air is strangulating…"

"I will do my best." Seeing as his hands were full, Touya used his tail to wrap it gently about Lily's wrist to squeeze it lightly for reassurance. "Take care of yourself. I will return with her in the morning before she wakes." With that said, he quickly slithered back towards the nest where Jin was located.


	23. Chapter 23

Jin didn't feel too much like sleeping that night, as he waited eagerly for Touya to return to the shack he was sharing with Silver. He had made his way outside of the worn, wooden door to hear every bit of sound that the night made. Every twig that snapped put the demon a bit on edge. Jin looked up at one of the trees shadowing the area to find a bird quickly flutter from where the branch had broke slightly under the talons. Shaking the uneasy feeling from his body, he caught something moving in the shadows, making him move slightly forward as he recognized the figure rather well. Seeing Touya soon coming into view, Jin looked about cautiously just in case his friend was followed. "You weren't seen, were you?" The redhead asked, knowing that what he was doing was dangerous.

"No, but you still owe me for this!" Touya growled quietly between them as he held the frail girl close to him. Looking down upon her, the ice demon could clearly see how tiny she was. "She's not as big as a human her age should be. She seems so small about the arms and everything." Touya handed her over to the wind master cautiously, fearful he would hurt her just by holding Neda.

"She just won't eat, so her body gets smaller," explained Jin, as he took Neda into his arms. "Ever since her parents died, she has gotten really sick."

"What do you plan on feeding her?" Getting a bit nervous himself, Touya couldn't help but look about the dark atmosphere. "Also, where do you plan on keeping her while she sleeps as does everyone else?" He shifted his sight from over his right shoulder to his left, appearing paranoid. "I keep feeling like Dustin will show up any moment."

"Me as well," stated Jin with he too looking around. The wind master found himself looking behind him at the abandoned shack "I'll have no other alternative but to take her inside with me." Turning around on his long, serpent body, Jin halted slightly at the door. "And don't worry, I have some human like food inside for her. You better get out of here before Dustin or one of the others see you."

Touya nodded at Jin's suggestion, backing away slowly on his scaly half. Recoiling back from what he had done, he glanced about regardless, still worried something was watching him. Quickly he ducked back into the woods to make his way towards the nesting area Dustin had created with the others.

Back inside of the shack where Silver was sleeping for the night, Jin kept Neda close to his chest. He could feel her stir slightly and moan, causing him to pause in moving about with her. "Don't wake up; don't wake up," he pleaded quietly between them. Even though he knew he could knock her out with the toxins in his nails, he didn't wish to dose her up on it.

Silver could hear the slight commotion nearby, causing her to slowly wake from her slumber. Turning around to see what Jin was doing and what he was holding, caused the young female to panic. "Jin!" She exclaimed quietly, curling up in the corner, seeing the two-legger in his embrace. "What's that thing doing here!" Silver trembled with a few frightened hisses, her eyes wide in surprise.

"Silver, don't be scared!" Jin insisted. "She's harmless. Right now, the human is asleep." He slithered closer to Silver carefully, knowing she was fearful of any type of human she saw. When Silver un-tensed a little bit to see that the young girl was indeed asleep, he came a bit closer to her. "See? She is asleep, and even if she were awake, she wouldn't hurt you. Not much she can do to do so being a baby human."

Silver made her way closer to Jin bit by bit until she was finally beside him. "You brought her all this way from that farm?" She had touched Neda once before when Silver was back at the farm, so she reached carefully over to touch the sleeping girl. "Their skin is still very smooth and weird."

"I had to bring her here, because she doesn't eat well when she's awake," explained Jin, as he put her down on the bed Silver was using prior. He witnessed Neda moan slightly from the movement, causing the demon to place his hand gently on her side in case he had to prick her with his long nails. When the young girl didn't wake, as she merely changed positions, he looked over at the basket of food items he had gathered while Touya was away. "I think this is what humans like to eat. I didn't want to feed her chickens or something."

"What did you get her?" Silver asked, coming closer to Neda once more to look at her a bit closer.

"I went into one of the gardens and houses of the local humans." Jin pulled a bag of strawberries, bread, onions, and other things out into view. "Lily taught me how to cook some of this stuff together, so I guess I could give it a try. If you could do me a favor, Silver, and watch her to make sure she doesn't wake up while I go outside to make the fire to cook this stuff with." When he saw her about to refuse, he held onto Silver's hand with a brief chuckle. "I promise, there isn't much to do. If she is about to wake up, just put her back to sleep." Here, he showed off his nails before kissing Silver on the cheek.

Silver fidgeted a bit. "O-Okay, I guess," she responded, watching Jin leave the shack for the time being. Turning back to the human girl, the young serpent female watched her from a distance with a bit of a low hiss. "What if this thing wakes up? My toxins aren't as strong as Jin's are…" Biting her lower lip, Silver moved in a bit closer to get a better look at Neda again. "I guess you don't look so dangerous when you're sleeping like that." Coiling her pale, scaly body about the sleeping child, Silver looked about cautiously before bending down to pick up Neda into her arms slowly. "I think he held her like this," she grunted, shifting the human's weight a bit carefully to where it was comfortable for them both.

Moaning softly at the feel of being moved, Neda remained asleep, turning to rest her cheek against Silver's bare, scaly chest. A smile graced her lips if only momentarily, thinking of her mother and the figure she had. Feeling as though she were back in her mother's arms, she remained content within Silver's embrace.

When Jin was finished with what he managed to cook from what Lily had taught him, he made his way back inside to find Silver actually holding Neda of her own accord. "Ah, you're holding her." Holding the pan he stole from one of the humans at Kalrune filled with the soup he made, he smiled at Silver. "See? When she's asleep, she isn't going to hurt you." Joining his nest mate, he placed the soup down near the bed they often used together. "She's not that much different from a hatchling, is she?"

"No, not when she's sleeping," Silver admitted, moving some of Neda's light brown hair out of her face. "But, I thought human babies were bigger then this. She is so small."

Jin chuckled a bit within his throat. "She's sick is why. When humans get upset, they stop eating just like any other creature would." Here, he placed his hand upon Neda's forehead to stroke it carefully, mindful of his nails. "She lost her parents in a fire I caused…" Jin's voice seemed to trail off a bit feeling the responsibility of it weigh on him. "I feel bad for making her this sick." Opening his arms, he motioned towards himself a bit. "Can I see her?"

"Jin…" Silver sighed upon her words, handing Neda over as he asked. "It wasn't your fault. You did everything you could, I am sure."

"I was so close to getting the mother out," explained Jin as he began to feed Neda what he had made. "But the boards collapsed on her right as she was almost free." When he found the girl almost refusing to eat what he had on the spoon, he rested his chin upon her forehead, so he could whisper in her ear. "You need to eat, child."

Hearing the male voice beckoning to her, Neda moaned slightly. "Dad…?"

Silver wasn't sure what was being said, as the last words Jin spoke were in human tongue. Her elfin ears up a bit, she watched the two closely as Jin was able to get her to eat finally. "What did you say to her?"

"I told her she needed to eat, and because I am a male, she thinks I am her father," Jin explained, continuing to spoon-feed her slowly.

"She must really think so to listen to you. Poor thing," said Silver sympathetically. "I can only imagine what it is like to lose someone you love." Looking over Jin's shoulder at the young girl, she reached down to rub her stomach tenderly. "Is she going to be okay?"

"I am sure she will be. It will just take some time," explained Jin, as he fed her the last bit that Neda was willing to eat. With the young girl finished for the night, the wind demon kept her close and rocked her a bit in his arms, as he often saw mothers of the human race do with their young.

Neda couldn't help but open her eyes slowly from where she was resting to gaze up and see two figures in the dark. She was too tired to keep them open for long, but she caught that they were a male and female. "Mom…dad…?" She whispered wearily before closing her eyes and going back to sleep.

Jin chuckled briefly, looking over at Silver. "She saw you for a second and thought you were her mother."

Silver looked from Neda to Jin with a raise of her thin, white brow. "She did?" She held onto Jin's shoulders, resting her cheek upon his neck. "I guess this is what it is like to be a parent?"

"Pretty much," said Jin, as he let Neda lie down on their bed for the night. "Not much to it, as you see. You're just there for them when they need you, protect them, feed them, and make sure they turn out okay." The two serpent demons remained close with one another, making sure Neda was going to be okay.

Back in Kalrune Village, Thane continued to man his post in the night. When he made it towards the end of the graveyard, which was built within the walls of Kalrune, he couldn't help but stop and look beyond the iron fence to the older one that had been taken over by so many serpent demons. Thane could only think of the redheaded demon he saw talking to Lily that night. _I don't know what to make of you_, he thought to himself. _You are so confusing._

"Thane," Kale called, as he made his way towards the younger knight. "I haven't seen you much tonight as I usually do. You must be really dragging your feet." Seeing Thane hardly give a reaction, Kale gazed out beyond the iron bars as well with his hazel eyes. "Ah, so you're still thinking about those snake demons?"

Thane didn't answer right away, as he was still caught up in thinking about what Lily told him as well as everything he and Blythe had been through with the beasts. His blond hair being caressed by the wind, his eyes narrowed slightly. "I don't know what to think when it comes to them. A part of me wants to believe they mean no harm, but…"

"While demons in general have done nothing to me, I still have heard a great deal of their thieving and murderous ways," Kale explained. "While I don't suggest you go looking for trouble, maybe you should tell someone about that nest back there. It might be better to destroy them before it gets out of control."

It was never within Thane's nature to attack anything that he never actually caught trying to kill someone or steal from someone else. Just as he was about to open his mouth to speak, Esmond soon came into view swearing angrily to himself. "Esmond?" He inquired, gazing over his shoulder at the oncoming knight. Thane witnessed as Kale put on a rather subtle frown at the mere presents of the fellow knight. "What is the matter?"

"There have been a few missing items from people in the village that have been reported," he grumbled, looking up and over his shoulder from whence he came from. When Esmond gazed at Thane, he couldn't help but frown. "Probably no doubt from those wretched snake beasts out there!"

Thane didn't know what to say about that. He knew that there wasn't much proof, but snake demons were notorious for eating people's livestock and stealing their belongings. "Esmond, just let it go." He dug the end of his spear into the ground, irritated at the knight's persistence to want to cause problems. "Even if they did steal a few things, it wasn't like they killed anyone."

"But that isn't for you to decide," retaliated Esmond, pointing his spear in the direction of the graveyard, left abandoned for years. "It is a no wonder why things go missing around here and so many animals show up dead. Those beasts do it, and I say we bring it to the attention of the Knight Captain!"

Thane could hardly find his words at the moment. "What…!"

"Now, just wait a moment," insisted Kale, raising his hand to stop the two from possibly fighting. "You're asking for us to bring this situation to the Captain all because of a few stole items?"

"The penalty for stealing itself is death," explained Esmond irritably, gazing down at Kale, seeing as the large male towered over him. "Why not treat those monsters the same way if they wish to step foot upon our lands?"

"There's no way any amount of men could take on as many as I saw," Thane busted in to say, hoping to sway Esmond's desire to start something. "There were probably hundreds if not thousands! Besides, it is wise not to anger them." He paused monetarily, thinking back on when the ground seemed to move under him and keep him in place no thanks to the powers of a snake demon. "Once I tried to strike one down, and another came and moved the earth about him to keep me trapped. It is as if some have grown with powers to make the world's elements listen to them."

"Powers?" Esmond wondered breathlessly. "That's either a serious claim or the biggest lie on the Great Phoenix's name that I've heard!"

Kale was there when they both got rooted into the ground. "Actually, I was there too when it happened." With eyes upon him now, he shrugged. "It was another snake demon after the one we nearly killed. It wasn't like the creature tried to kill us or anything."

"If those creatures are evolving into such monsters, then they should be destroyed!" Esmond insisted, planting the end of his spear into the ground. "If none of you will go the Knight Captain, then I will!" Turning on his heels, the knight whistled for his armored steed, so he could head back into the Eytheria Castle Town area where the captain usually was. With the armored, black Clydesdale trotting towards his master, Esmond mounted on top of the creature. "I suggest you both be prepared for an attack. We'll need everyone possible for this!"

Thane's mouth opened in shock, he shook his head angrily at Esmond's wish to start a war with the demons. "This is not wise, and he knows this!" He yelled at Kale, shifting his focus from where his friend stood to where Esmond was heading. "He could start an all out war with demons if he kills a nest that big!"

"Especially if he leaves some alive—Thane!" Kale panicked at seeing his friend hurry out of the graveyard and to his horse with a loud whistle. "What are you doing!" He exclaimed in wonder, watching Thane practically jump on the back of his own horse without waiting for the creature to stop.

"I have to see if she's right!" Thane yelled vaguely in response, as he headed to the desolate graveyard, ignoring Kale's desire for him to slow down.

Kale watched as Thane headed off towards the snake nest alone. Panicking, he looked about before rushing towards his own horse. "I've got to tell someone!" Getting on the armored Palomino, the knight nudged its sides to get the horse to quickly take off towards the market square.

Thane's thoughts were racing as he headed back towards the old graveyard where he last saw the redheaded snake demon venture to. The horse's hooves beating into the ground, it caused a tremendous thundering sound, as Thane insisted the steed to go as fast as possible. However, the ground beneath the stallion seemed to move. The surface of the earth broke and roots shot up to grab the creature's legs and force it to throw the knight from its back when it fell forwards.

Rolling forwards off of the horse, Thane was caught by complete surprise when his cold armor hit the ground with a loud clank. Shaking himself back to his senses, he could clearly hear his horse behind him neighing out in terror. He was unsure what was going on until the feel of scales wrapped tightly about his armor, almost crushing the iron itself. He could hardly even talk given the serpent tail steadily crept up to his face to silence him.

"What do we have here?" Hissed the demon in the darkness in demonic. Coming more into the moonlight, Kurama gazed down angrily at the trespassing human. He watched as the knight seemed to panic at the mere sight of him as well as attempt to speak in human tongue, though unable to given his mouth was covered. "Bad omen you are, indeed."

Thane grabbed onto the tail to move it forcefully from where it was. "You have to let me go!" He begged, hoping the demon would fully understand him. "Knights may be coming here to finish you all off! I have to speak to the other redheaded serpent who lives here!"

Hearing some of the words just fine, Kurama's eyes widened at the sound of the men in iron coming to their nesting site. _They wouldn't dare…!_ Kurama slowly released Thane, watching, as the knight was quick to back away from him, but only keep his distance at the very least. "More iron men…?" He spoke in his broken English.

Thane's eyes widened even more at the sound of the creature actually talking in his tongue. "You can talk…!" He gasped, unable to believe that the beast almost appeared human to him now.

"Only little," Kurama answered once more. "Careful—you no welcome." The redhead could only hope in his shock, Thane could understand clearly what he was trying to say. When the knight refused to move from where he was standing, Kurama waved his hands to hint him to hurry up and go do whatever it was he wanted to do. _Go, you ridiculous human being!_ He thought irritably.

"Thank you!" Said Thane with a nod of his head, turning on his heels to hurry deeper into the woods, cautiously, to find Jin. His heart racing at an incredible speed, he began panting heavily. He was more fearful then ever that a snake demon would lunge out and attack him for being in their territory. Pushing the tree branches out of the way, Thane found himself at the shack that Jin was within. "This must have been where the old graveyard keep used to sleep," he whispered to himself, making his way towards the building.

Jin and Silver were still inside, making sure Neda was okay. When the two could smell the scent of iron, both went on alert. Turning around quickly, Jin hissed lowly at the sound of the armor clanking beyond the door. "One of those men are here…," he whispered between them. Seeing the panic in Silver's eyes, he pointed at Neda and the far corner of the room. "Quickly, take Neda and just bundle up in the corner! I'll make sure he leaves!"

Silver grabbed Neda tightly and wrapped her body up in the corner. She was shaking all over at the smell of the knight's armor getting closer. Her slit eyes wide, she watched as the door slowly opened with a loud creek.

When the door opened all the way, Jin hissed loudly and lunged forwards only to stop himself midway at realizing who the knight was. _Him again…!_ He panicked, withdrawing himself.

"You…! I found you!" Thane said breathlessly. Before he could think to say another word, his eyes caught sight of Silver in the corner with Neda bundled up with her. The scene couldn't help but look a bit discriminating for him given the position the female serpent was in. "You're trying to kill her!" He yelled, grabbing out his sword to aim from Silver to Jin. "Let Neda go!"

Jin panicked a bit, causing him to yell in English. "We're not going to kill her!"

His accent was thick when he spoke those words, but regardless, the full and complete sentence threw Thane off guard momentarily. "I don't believe you!" He insisted, trying to stand his ground. "I know you can understand me perfectly well, beast, so I will ask of you to release her to me!"

Before Jin could hope to speak once more, he witnessed as Thane was wrapped up in scales and pulled back by two different serpent demons. Dustin and Aland were able to grab a hold of the intruding knight to pen him to the ground. "Wait! Stop!" Jin begged in demonic, making his way outside. "Don't kill him!"

Dustin wrapped most of his serpent half around Thane, threatening to squeeze the life out of him. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't seeing as he was about to attack you!"

Jin was hesitant to speak, knowing Dustin would probably have his head for going against his orders. "He was just defending someone he was watching over to begin with! It isn't his fault he is here, it is mine!" Sighing heavily, Jin called over his shoulder. "Silver, bring her out here to me."

Silver came to the doorway with the young human in her arms. She witnessed as everyone gasped at the mere sight of another human being kept within both of their possession. "She is asleep!" She defended, watching as some of the serpent demons hissed angrily and threatened to attack the slumbering Neda.

"You brought that thing here!" Dustin exclaimed angrily at Jin, hissing at the redhead. "Do you have any idea what you have done!" At that moment, screams could be heard within the woods where the majority of the nests were located. The heavy smell of iron on the air irritated them all and yet frightened them all the same. "They brought more…!" Caught up in his past of hearing the same terrified screams made Dustin panic and worry for nests that weren't his. Looking back at Jin, he shook his head at him. "Jin, why would you **DO** this!" He yelled angrily.

All of the sounds getting to her, Neda began to stir in her sleep to the point she opened her eyes fully. "What…where am I…" She asked, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

Seeing she was awake, Thane gathered what strength he could to speak. "**NEDA**!" He yelled from the tight squeeze he was within. "Neda, get away from there!" Thane ordered from where the alpha male had him.

Neda's fear began to gradually rise as she saw all of the snake demons around her. Looking up at Silver, she rolled out of her arms to scurry away from her. "Leave me alone, you monsters!" Looking back at Silver, she didn't bother to see where she was going, causing her to run into Touya, who was watching the situation nearby. The touch of his icy body caused her to shiver, as Neda backed away from him.

"Touya," Dustin called over to the ice demon. "Kill that creature!"

Touya raised his brows at his leader before gazing down at Neda, who was not but within inches of his body seeing as she was probably paralyzed by fear. He looked up at Jin, who was shaking his head back and forth not to do it. The ice master couldn't help but think about everything Neda was going through. With her parents taken from her, she was only suffering in her ways of living. He turned his body towards the frightened girl to wrap her a bit in his serpent form, so she couldn't escape.

"No! Let go of me!" Neda begged, shaking at the chill of Touya's body as well as the fear enveloping her.

"Touya!" Jin called from where he was standing. "Don't do it!"

"Jin!" Dustin snapped angrily, demanding in his name alone for the wind master to be quiet. "Touya, kill that thing **NOW**!"

Sighing at Jin's persistent behavior to want to keep Neda alive, Touya shook his head at his comrade. "Jin, I know you want to make sure she stays alive, but she doesn't want to live anymore. If she wanted to live, she would eat on her own." Here, he looked down at the frightened human girl. "Sometimes it is within parental instincts when they know a child is beyond saving." Leaning downwards, Touya opened his mouth to show his sharp teeth, dripping with venom. He inched slowly for her neck, hoping to end her misery.

Before Touya's teeth could touch Neda's skin, an arrow came flying from the woodlands to pierce Silver right in the chest. Screaming from the pain, the young serpent demon convulsed a bit before her body hit the ground. "Silver!" Jin yelled in horror as he witnessed the arrow make a direct hit on her. Making his way over towards her, he threatened to pull the arrow from where it was resting.

"Don't!" Kurama yelled from where he soon came into view. "If you remove that arrow, it is going to kill her!" Hurrying towards everyone, he grabbed onto Dustin's shoulder to edge him to move elsewhere. "We have to get out of here! The knights have gotten past Hiei and the other alphas! There are hundreds of them coming to burn the entire place down!"

Another arrow zipping through the air caught Jin's attention, causing him to bring up a powerful wind barrier around everyone to stop anymore incoming projectiles from hitting anyone else. He witness through the barrier that four knights were making their way towards the small cluster of serpent demons.

Kale happened to be amongst them. When he saw Thane wrapped up tightly in Dustin's coils, he gasped. "They have Thane!" Aiming another arrow at the demons, he growled angrily at the creatures that held his friend captive. "Release him!"

"If you fire that shot, we will think about killing him!" Dustin said in their native tongue.

"They speak…!" Esmond remarked in awe, unable to believe such a thing.

"Esmond! Kale! They have Neda Cormac!" Thane yelled from where he was struggling. "Free her! They are going to kill—!" He was unable to finish his words when Dustin's tail wrapped about his mouth.

"Shut up, human!" Dustin growled angrily, hissing with a show of his fangs.

"Dustin, just release them both already!" Kurama demanded in demonic angrily with a gesture of his hand, added with an irritable hiss once Jin removed the wind barrier from around them. "At any rate, we have to get out of here!" When Dustin didn't listen to him right away, he turned to Touya to growl irritably at the ice master. "Release her!"

Touya looked down at the frightened Neda in his coils. He sighed heavily through his nostrils and slowly, but surely, released the young farm girl from where he had her. He watched as she hurried quickly over to the guards to hide behind them.

"Now, if you don't release the knight, we will bring down another of your fellow members!" Warned a nameless knight there with the group, aiming his duel-swords at the demons. When Dustin refused to listen, the man turned and nodded Kale, who quickly aimed his arrows at Finlay to strike the serpent male in the side to make the demon fall momentarily.

"Release him!" Kurama yelled again, hoping Dustin would listen this time.

"Finlay!" Dustin exclaimed in surprise. Angry at having to see someone of his nest struck in such a way and in pain put the alpha over the edge. With his grip not as tight around Thane any longer, however, the knight was able to scurry away from Dustin and make it back beside the other knights. "Monsters…the lot of ya!" He hissed in demonic, not wanting them to hear his angered words.

Kurama turned to Jin and Silver, urging them both to leave the site. "You must take her and get as far away from here as possible!" His acute hearing catching the sound of arrows once more, the earth guardian turned around to find flaming arrows heading in their direction. "Run!" He demanded, pushing the two out of the way as the building was struck and soon bursting into flames. "Go—now! Deeper into the woods, we should all be safe! Quickly!" When he realized everyone was trying their best to escape but Dustin, Kurama turned around to grab the alpha by the wrist. "Dustin, we must leave!"

"Pathetic creatures," insulted Esmond from where he stood as the others turned around to leave the small group alone. "You can run for now, but don't think you won't be hunted back down and killed on sight. You're only delaying the inevitable."

Thane placed his hand on Esmond's cold armor, trying to prompt the knight to leave them be. "Just let them go! If anything, this will scare them off," he insisted between them. During his conversation, he happened to look over and see Jin gazing at him in the distance with Silver in his arms. Through the screams and the sound of the fire raging behind them, Thane seemed to block it all out when he gazed into Jin's blue eyes from afar.

Jin knew the knight was looking at him, so he dared not look away. He merely shook his head slowly from side to side with a disapproving stare upon his face. Lowering his head in sadness, he faltered his elfin ears before he was ushered away and out of sight.

The fire ate through many of the trees, causing tree branches to snap and fall to the ground to burn up the nesting areas. Many different serpent demons and knights lie in the fires either dead or dying. With a storm slowly moving in from the east, the thunder eventually cued the heavy rainfall to clear up the fire, so that it wouldn't spread. All of those who made it alive, scurried further into the woodlands as Kurama suggested. There were still a few left alive, however, the loss was too much for the alphas.

"Why would they attack us? We did nothing to those worthless humans!" Hiei grumbled. His eyes were a dark, blood red. He had dark scales all over and a white underbelly. "If I were allowed, I would have burned the rest of them alive!" Here, he created a black fireball within his right hand.

Hearing the commotion behind him, Dustin sighed angrily to himself. "I'll take care of the situation." He looked over at Aland and nodded at the injured Finlay. "Watch over him for me. Make sure nothing happens to him."

Aland moved closer to Finlay, who was lying down on his side in obvious pain. They were ordered not to remove the arrow without Kurama's help. Seeing his friend panting and sweating from the agony of the object still being embedded within his body, Aland placed his hand upon Finlay's forehead to help him relax a bit.

Jin was holding Silver close to his figure with Kurama inspecting the arrow in her chest. He was worried, because it sounded like she was having a hard time breathing with it there. "It's okay," he whispered to her in the rain. "You're going to be alright."

With Kurama investigating the penetration area of the arrow, he couldn't help but shake his head. "It didn't go through all the way, and there is a reason for it, I am sure." He looked over at Jin with a sigh. "In order to get it out, I would have to push it through her and break both ends, but here is the problem, part of the item is in her heart already." Seeing Jin shake his head with a dreadful look gave Kurama a difficult time explaining the situation entirely. "She is dying as it is. In order to put her down, I'd have to push it through her to end the suffering."

"Just pull it out then!" Jin yelled angrily, not wanting to lose Silver.

"Jin, I can't!" Kurama retaliated, trying to be understanding and reasonable with the wind master. "If I pull out the arrow, part of it could break and remain inside of her! Besides, as I said earlier, her heart is _**pierced**_!" He emphasized best he could to the other redhead. "If I pull out the arrow in any form, she is going to bleed to death internally and die."

"So either way…she's going to die…" Jin whispered between them. He heard Kurama say he was sorry, but Jin was unsure of how to respond to it all. Sighing heavily, he looked down at Silver, who was in too much pain to understand what was going on. She was sweating and shaking all over as well as staggering to breathe.

Opening her eyes slowly through her wild and messy white hair, Silver spoke softly. "Jin…?"

Kurama knew it was time to move away so that the two could be alone for a moment, though he remained in the area in case Jin wanted him to end it for him. Jin turned to the young serpent demon, lying down beside her with his hand upon her face. "I am so sorry, Silver," he said quietly between them. "I am supposed to protect you from harm, and I couldn't even do that right."

Silver coughed slightly, gurgling a bit before causing blood to trickle from the corner of her mouth. She panicked weakly from the taste. "What's wrong with me…?"

Jin closed his eyes tightly to prevent himself from crying in front of Silver. He wanted to remain strong for her till she passed. Reaching over with his hands, he cupped the back of her head to stroke her hair. "Shhh, it is going to be okay." Leaning forwards, he kissed her forehead to try and relax her a bit. "When you close your eyes, you're going to be in a better place."

She knew then and there what was wrong with her. Silver couldn't help but let tears slip from the corner of her eyes, though she tried to prompt a smile. "Will I get to see you there?"

"Every day that you want to," he said with a smile, holding onto her closest hand to him. "You can be by my side any time that you want." Seeing her manage a small laugh pained him yet relieved him all at the same time. "Now, close your eyes, and I will be here when you wake." With Silver doing as she was told, Jin nuzzled in closer to her neck while placing his hand upon the arrow in her chest. "I love you." Closing his eyes tightly, he put what strength he could into forcing the arrow out the other side, killing Silver instantly. When he heard her take one last gasp of air and then stop, Jin curled his hands into fists to prevent himself from showing he was devastated though he failed.

Kurama remained where he was off to the side to let Jin have his moment before crawling his way forwards to place his hand upon his back. "I can still try to save the babies she was going to have if you want me to."

Jin sighed heavily through his pain, shaking his head. "To do that, you'd have to cut her open. If you do, I don't want to watch."

"Jin!" Dustin's voice soon called from the bushes. Slithering forwards angrily, he waved Jin over. "I want a word with you."

Kurama met eyes with Jin with a slight nod. "I will take care of the eggs inside of her. Just…be careful, okay? Make your choice wisely." He spoke vaguely to the wind master, turning to Silver's body.

"What is it, Dustin?" Jin asked somberly, his arms crossed over his chest even though he knew he was in trouble. "If it is about what happened, I know, it is my fault."

Dustin raised his brows slightly at Jin finally admitting to something he did. "About time you take responsibility for your actions. But, seeing as you went against my orders previously, I have come to my punishment." Sighing heavily, it was hard for him to come to this decision as Jin meant a great deal to him. He also viewed him as a son of his. "Jin, I exile you from my nest. I no longer take you under me."

Touya came into the picture as soon as he heard Dustin exile Jin. "Dustin, you can't do this!" He insisted, making his way over to the two. "If you exile him, then exile me as well, because I am just as much to blame as him! I brought the girl to Jin!"

"Then I exile you both," he spoke almost callously about the situation. "After the conversation we had, I never would expect you to do this to me, Jin." Dustin watched as Jin lowered his head, knowing that he hurt everyone in this incident. "I want you gone. You can go back to your older brother or you two can live by yourselves. I just want nothing to do with either of you anymore." Sighing heavily, he backed away from the two slowly. "Regrettable…I saw such promise in you both."

"Dustin…I am so sorry," Jin apologized, recoiling himself back.

"Don't speak to me again," he insisted with a shake of his head. "Finlay, Aland, and I are heading back home. I hope you both can make it as you are." Never had Dustin felt so betrayed by one he had raised. Turning from the two in the heavy rain, the alpha made his way back to his injured friend.

Kurama watched from where he was next to Silver's body, listening in on the conversation. He had managed to get all of the babies out of the female's body. His hands covered in blood, they were easily washed off from the pouring rain. One of the babies she had was born without being in the egg itself unlike most of the others. It was a little girl with a soft, aquatic looking scale texture and dully looking red hair. "Jin," he called over the rain before making his way over towards him with the baby in his arms. "You know you can always stay here. Beldon doesn't have to know about anything."

"The offer is really kind, Kurama, but I don't think that would be right of me to do. After all, he entrusted me with his daughter, and I let him down," Jin admitted, turning around to spy the young baby in his arms. "My baby…?" He wondered, looking down at the small demon.

"Yes, it was the only one out of five total that didn't have an egg around it," explained Kurama as he handed the baby over to the father. "If you don't want to stay, who is going to take over the babies you leave behind?"

Jin held the baby close to him, glad to know she was alive. However, he knew if he and Touya lived by themselves, he would be unable to take care of the babies without the resources of having many females to help him with the gathering of food and whatnot. "They would not be safe with me. You can ask Touya, I hardly know how to take care of myself let alone a baby without people there to help me. I always have to be told what to do. I was willing to do this with Silver…and even trying would be too painful. I cannot accept another death on me."

"Who do you want me to leave them with?" Kurama asked curiously, letting Jin hold the baby for as long as he wanted to.

"I trust you with them" answered Jin, as he handed the baby girl reluctantly over to the fellow redhead. "I know you're a better choice then anyone out there." He couldn't bear to look over at Silver's body, knowing that her fair blood painted the ground, as did her entrails. "Knowing what kind of mother Silver would be, I have no doubt you'll be the ideal father for them."

"I know the female who will like these babies as she lost her own several moons ago." Kurama sighed at the situation, holding the baby close to him. "I am sorry about all of this. May the Great Drake watch over the both of you on your journeys."

"I am sorry too," apologized Jin in return. He felt Touya tugging at his arm soon after. In Touya's eyes and expression, Jin could see that it was time to go. "I guess we better find our own place to stay now. Take care, Kurama. I hope for the best."

Nodding at the two on their way, Kurama turned around to pick up the eggs, so he could head back what was left of his clan. The lightening in the dark lit up the torn body of Silver as he did so, making him feel awful for the poor female. "May your spirit find rest, Silver," he whispered between the two of them. His arms full of the babies, Kurama disappeared into the foliage, leaving behind Silver's body.


	24. Chapter 24

**Author's Notes**: Sorry for the length of this one. I was trying to finish it when my main computer decided to fry…again…x-x; Everything has been fixed and replaced but the hard drive, so it SHOULD work properly now. I had to write from scratch, at one point, on my laptop to try and remember where I last left off. Heh.

Also, I was on a two-week vacation with my bf, so I was spending as much time as possible with him, as I don't get to see him much. And due to a few problems going on now in my life, updates might be fast or slow depending on where things decide to go. We'll see.

* * *

Remembering the fire burning heavily upon his skin, Thane looked around frantically in the surreal setting. The sounds of screams echoing faintly throughout his mind, he found himself running deep within the woods only to turn around to find one of the serpent demons lunging at him with their poisonous fangs ready to bite into him. With it all seeming so real, the knight quickly woke from his sleep in a dripping sweat.

Panting heavily, Thane felt the sweat drip down his beard he had grown within the past 12 years, leaving him to be 32. He continued to have the same reoccurring dream, and it was becoming troublesome. Ever since that night, Thane couldn't break the nightmares that perused him. Some of the faces were harder to remember that night, but the pain in those blue eyes still haunted him. Massaging his forehead, he shook the thoughts best he could, moving his feet to the side of his bed.

"Thane," called a woman beyond his bedroom door. "Are you ready for lunch?"

"I'll be there in a minute, Blythe," he answered back to the young woman. Gazing about the room they shared, he brought his hands up to his face to wake himself up a bit further before stepping out of the bed and making his way down the wooden stairs. Upon making it to the kitchen area, he saw the 27 year old standing there at the stove. When Blythe turned around upon hearing his footsteps, the knight smiled tenderly at her. "Glad I didn't miss it this time."

Blythe's reddish brown hair showed a bit more red in it the older she got, seeing as she was usually out in the sun almost all day at the Eytheria Market trying to sell baked goods she made with foreign ingredients. Lily had really gotten her into cooking after a certain point, and she found herself branching out steadily. Her hair was quite long, reaching to the back of her knees in a down, ponytail braid. "I wasn't about to take any chances with you missing a meal before you got up to eat dinner and then head back to your post about the castle," replied Blythe with a smile.

Thane stifled a yawn against his palm as he made it to the wooden table in the living room quarters of the house they had bought in Eytheria's castle walls. Blythe and himself had gotten married 6 years ago, and by that time, they decided to move away from the farm. Thane couldn't help but constantly fear something bad happening to her after the incident that night. "So what is in store for me today?" He asked with a brief yet weary chuckle.

"Some fish with steamed vegetables and white rice," answered Blythe from over her shoulder as she put the finishing touches on the meal. "I am hoping this will keep you till dinner at the very least." She knew Thane was notorious for eating quite a deal as of late with most of his worries off of his shoulders. Blythe was relieved, even if it put her on extra cooking duty.

"Have you talked to Neda any today?" He was curious to know, taking his fork to start eating the food in front of him.

Thinking of her younger sister, Blythe frowned slightly with a shake of her head. "Not as of today. Speaking of her, I haven't heard from her in a good while now. I really hope she is alright." Situating her plate in front of herself, she began to move about the food a bit before putting some in her mouth.

Thane shrugged at the thought of anything bad happening to Neda. He knew she became a tough girl within her years of growing up, and nothing was going to stop her from getting whatever it was she wanted. "I am sure she is just fine. I can always stop by to see if she is there before my shift. And if she is not there, I can always ask Lily how things have been." Lily had refused to leave the farm and offered to stay with Neda Cormac, who had nowhere else to go.

"That would be nice of you to do so," expressed Blythe with an added smile. "I can only imagine what she is up to about now."

Back at the Cormac Farm, the 23-year-old Neda hurried out of the front door that mid afternoon. Her light brown hair about her mid back, it blew about in the wind as she rushed out to the barn in her brown boots hiding under her blue dress with white trim. The white top of it was sleeveless and rested about her upper arms in a V-cut. "So late! So late!" She muttered to herself making it to the barn to throw open the door to make it inside to open the stalls one by one. "Sorry! Sorry! I didn't mean to leave you all in here so long!" Neda apologized to the animals, as she let them run out into the barnyard.

When all of the animals made it out freely into the fields, she collapsed against the woodwork of the barn entrance. Ever since she had been slowly crawling out of her depression for the past few years, it had been hard for Neda to regain her energy at decent times. When Lily was younger, she used to let the animals out herself. However, Lily was now 50 years old and spent most of her time either inside cooking and or napping or spending her time out on the rocking chair outside on the porch. While her hair had gone gray and limp and a few wrinkles placed upon her skin, she still was as fair as ever to Neda.

Wiping her brow, Neda got to her feet to head back towards the house. Getting to the porch steps, she heard the front door steadily open to reveal Lily standing there. "Miss. Lily, what are you doing up at this hour? Usually you are taking a nap." She held onto the blind woman's hand to help her outside if that was where she wished to go.

Lily had to use a cane to walk. Her memory on a few placements of things was getting fuzzy, and she couldn't find herself to put too much pressure into her left leg. "You worry too much, Neda." She smiled regardless at the young girl's desire to make sure she was okay. "I am sure I can take my nap out here on the rocking chair."

Helping her to the wooden chair, Neda couldn't help but twist her mouth to the side confused at Lily's constant desire to sit there. "Why do you always insist on doing that? I know I never asked prior, but still..."

Sighing to herself, she relaxed against the comfortable pillows. "I am hoping an old friend will show back up," she responded vaguely. Ever since that night Thane came home, smelling of smoke and blood, she knew something bad happened. Lily still remembers the horrible smell and running to the knight to demand to know if Jin was all right. She was never given a clear response, leaving her even blinder to what happened that night.

Neda merely shrugged at the response. "If you say so." Feeling the refreshing breeze brush against her hair and cheeks, she gazed out at the farmyard with her red, scaled necklace chiming a bit from the disturbance. "Today feels like a nice chance to get some art pieces done." She moved from beside the rocking chair with a smile upon her fair lips. "I will be right back." Excusing herself to go back inside to fetch her pad of paper and her quill, Neda eventually returned with them both in her possession.

"What do you plan on drawing today?" Lily wondered curiously, tilting her head slightly to the side.

She sat down beside the chair Lily was within with a shrug. "Just a few things here and there." Lately, Neda had a desire to draw random faces and figures she ever caught in the back of her mind or out in the Eytheria Market Square. Drawing was all she ever did as of late if she wasn't taking the farm's items to the market to be sold. Even then, she mostly gave the items to Blythe to have her sell in her stand.

The breeze was still very inviting that hot summer day. Deeper within the woods on the western part of Eytheria, the leaves began to crunch and shift about with red scales shining through them. Turning around, Jin yawned a mighty yawn with a stretch. His muscles flexing a bit, he pushed himself up from where he was sleeping next to Touya. He had gotten bigger throughout the coming years, adding a few extra inches onto his serpent half. "That was a nice nap," he grinned, turning around to tap Touya on the shoulder. "Wake up already, sleepy! I have to admit I am hungry."

Touya groaned lowly, opening one eye to spy the redhead nearby. His chin resting upon his overlapping arms, he turned his head slightly to gaze up Jin slightly. "When are you not hungry?" Moving his serpent half slowly under his bed of leaves, the ice master stretched to try and wake himself up further. "And where exactly did you plan on going?"

Jin had found himself a bit less then desired to return back to the Cormac Farm, even if the idea popped up on occasion. Ever since Silver was taken from him, he had a major resentment towards the knight who lived there. He was afraid if he ever saw him again face to face, he wouldn't be able to control his anger. Touya had assured him that Jin had done everything he could and the human females were in good hands as it was. "I am sure I will find something. I think there is a human town off to the southeast."

"You still even have to go thieving from humans even after all they've done," Touya grumbled, trying to sway Jin from the thought of going near another human village.

"Not like I have much else to protect at this moment," Jin explained with a grin. Even though he was being serious, some of the things he said seemed a bit on the side of him not really caring if he died or not. It worried Touya from time to time, though Jin rarely saw it in his actions. "Now, come on! Don't be so scared of a few humans!"

"Sometimes I wish you'd be more careful," Touya mumbled to himself, as he made his way after Jin to the village he spoke of.

Trees and bushes mostly hid the trail, which led to the village. It made traveling to it a bit easier then worrying about being caught out in plain sight by the Eytheria Knights. That night had struck an ongoing war between the human knights and the serpent demons for 12 years and counting. The demons didn't care if they killed a man in iron on sight if he was alone, and the same was for the knights nowadays. Since that massacre, all snake demons were to be killed on sight, as were the knights. It appeared as though both sides begrudged the other, causing an unnecessary bloodbath.

"I am just relieved you're eating again," Touya admitted, as he pushed some of the lower tree limbs out of his way.

Jin smirked over his shoulder with a shake of his head. "You've said that several times in the past few years. I promise that I am okay." With the death of Silver a painful impact on him, he had stopped eating for some time until finally coming to terms with his loss. He had to admit that being reminded of it by little things was painful in itself, but he tried to shrug it off. With the village boarder coming into view, he and Touya both slunk off to the side to hide.

"I can smell the knights," said Touya right away with a low hiss.

The redhead pointed ahead of them. "That is why." Ahead of them at the gate there were two knights standing there on guard. Seeing as most of the village was fenced in and it was in the afternoon, Jin knew it was going to be a tricky feat to try and sneak in. "We might have to dig our way in."

"All this trouble for a few animals we can catch in the wild!" Touya exclaimed in whisper between the two of them. When Jin ignored him, he couldn't help but grumble a bit before slinking off after his friend.

Cautiously Jin made it towards the fence. The sound of the lively town on the opposite side made him a bit leery at first but his desires for food overrode his thought process. "We'll start digging here. I don't smell many humans at this spot." He could also hear the chickens rather clearly on the other side. "Come!" His nails digging into the soft ground, Jin began to burrow his way through to the other side with Touya aiding him.

On the opposite side of the fence, Neda was riding up on her fully-grown mare, Black Rose. When she was able to get her energy together for the day, she grabbed a few items to take to the local villages to sell. The Village of Neldron was one of her stops, even if it was quite far. The horse pulling the carriage through the wooden entryway, Neda nodded to the guards at their post. She still felt a bit tired, but she knew once she got settled she could afford to stop and eat something to boost her energy back up. With the horse stopping soon off to the side of the road leading into the village, she hopped off of the carriage to look into setting up her own little booth as planned for the coming hours. "I don't know how Blythe manages to do this sort of thing day in and day out!" She grumbled mostly to herself, opening up the back of the cart to make her way inside to sort through her items. She could hear the mare snorting slightly, making Neda shake her head at the impatient mare. "Look, I only have so much energy to spare right now, okay? So it is going to take awhile," she remarked back to the horse. "Don't be such a baby."

"When the horse starts talking back, it is time to run," responded a young man from behind the farm girl.

Neda slightly jumped at the voice startling her. Spinning around, she placed her hand upon her rapidly beating chest. "My goodness, you scared me!" She expressed to the male villager.

"Forgive me," chuckled the redhead. "I didn't mean to frighten you, miss." He pointed at the luggage she was carrying around with her. "I can help you if you like."

"That would be nice of you." Neda was able to calm herself from the previous startle. She began to pull some items from the back of the carriage to hand over to him. With the moments of silence, Neda couldn't help but find it a bit awkward, as she had him help her unload. "So what is your name? I am sorry, I didn't catch it."

The freckled, redhead chuckled with his wavy, red hair brushing about in the tranquil wind. "Oh, my apologizes for not introducing myself sooner. My name is Dalton Copper. I run the Millrun Inn in this village. It has been in my family for generations." With the last box unpacked from the back of the cart, he helped Neda down off of the last step. "I have seen you set up your shop here many times before. It always appeared as though you never had much to eat before traveling to your next village."

Neda began to move a few things around in front of the carriage, so she could advertise her items a bit better. She smiled a bit at the man's kind words. "Well, it is a hard job, but it is because ever since my parent's death many years ago that I don't have a lot of energy or I appear the sort." She moved the jar filled with the cows' milk off to the side to make way for the box filled with the sheep cotton. "I was taken to a doctor my friend Lily knew of, and he called it 'depression' or something. I basically shut my body off to the thought of living after their unfair death."

"Well that sure is a tragic tale," Dalton admitted, feeling bad for Neda's situation. "I am sorry that happened to you." As Neda was messing around with getting everything set up for the day, he happened to notice the red-scaled necklace she was wearing. "Oh, where did you get that from?"

Her eyes met with his blue, confused as to what he meant before she recalled the necklace she always wore. "Oh, this? I made it a long time ago, and I have been unable to part with it since." She placed her hand upon the necklace with a bit of a smile. "It has been oddly comforting for some reason. Probably because it was an item I kept close to me during that dark time." With everything soon set up, Neda placed her hands on her hips and took in a deep sigh of relief. "Now, to sell some of this stuff."

"Well, I am happy I could help," said Dalton. He turned around upon his heels to head back towards his inn. "By the by, if you ever feel like stopping by at my inn, it is just to the north of the village. Ask for me, and I will make sure I get you something before you leave."

"No, no, no," Neda insisted, pushing some of her stray, beige hair out of her face. "You really don't have to give me anything. I assure you, I do this sort of stuff all the time with my illness." She didn't want to feel like she was taking something for free when she had the funds to pay for anything she desired or needed.

Dalton wouldn't accept her 'no's for an answer. He shook his head as well as his finger at her. "Please, it will be my treat." Here, he bowed before Neda respectfully. "Just be sure to catch me before you leave." Just as he was about to head back towards the inn, he could hear some of the local villagers screaming and yelling 'snake demon'. With Neda on high alert behind him, he motioned for her to stay. "Don't worry. I will take care of it!" Grabbing a pitchfork nearby, he ran in the direction of the screams.

"Get out of here, you wretched beasts!" One of the female villagers exclaimed, throwing a rock in the direction of Jin and Touya. "If you don't get out of here, we will have you sliced opened by the knights!"

With some of the chickens' corpses already in their possession, Jin and Touya both hissed angrily at the villagers' attacks upon them. Touya couldn't help but growl up at Jin at that moment with his fangs bared. "I told you this was a bad idea!" He hissed in demonic to the wind master.

When Dalton threatened to come at Jin with the pitchfork, he was quick to move to the side. Dropping the chickens in his mouth, he bared his fangs and snapped at the human as a warning. Even though his hatred for humans was still there after what happened to Silver, he still refused to kill them knowing that it wouldn't make things right. Knowing that if he stayed much longer, he would probably be killed, Jin picked back up the dead chickens to hurry back towards the point they crawled through. "Hurry! Hurry!" He demanded to Touya in demonic. "Let's get out of this village!"

Just as Jin was about to dive under with the ice master, he stopped himself when he saw a familiar face in the back. _Neda…! _He thought to himself, his jaw nearly dropping considering what the years had done to her. There was nothing but rage in her eyes from what he could see, but he knew there was a reason for it. He had to admit, he was surprised to even see her alive. Hearing Touya call his name from the opposite side of the fence, Jin parted from seeing the elder Neda and made his way under the fence and quickly to safety.

"Damn beasts," grumbled the female villager who was attending to those chickens. She sighed heavily as she made her way over towards the spooked birds in hopes of settling them from the event. "That is the first time in some moons that they had the gull to attack my chickens."

"They are annoying, heartless beasts," grumbled Neda from the back. She didn't recognize the demons, as it had been many years since she last saw them. "They are the same race that took my parents from me. I can never find it in myself to forgive them for what they did."

"I am sure many of us have lost a good deal from them." Dalton put away the pitchfork for the time being even if it matched his overalls he was wearing. "I thought for sure a majority of them had been destroyed years ago during that fire." He was thinking back on the fight that the knights took on with the thousands of demons in the Kalrune Graveyard. Those that survived were awarded medals for their bravery and some were even promoted. It was a memorable time for the humans. Shaking his head at the monsters, he turned back to Neda and attempted to press a smile for the time being. "Anyways, just remember to come to my inn later. I will make sure you have something before you leave no matter what it costs me."

"Dalton…" Neda was silenced with a simple wave of his finger. She knew he wasn't going to be swayed from his decision, making her sigh at his persistent behavior before heading back towards her horse and cart. Seeing as the serpent demons had previously made their attack, she made sure everything was in order before attempting to sell.

Touya and Jin both hurried over the hills until the stench of humans was long gone. "Have you gone mad!" He exclaimed angrily between them. "Any moment further and you might have gotten yourself killed!"

Jin dropped the dead bird from his mouth, putting the others down as well. "I stopped for a moment because I saw that farm girl. I thought for sure she had probably died by now." Ever since he was chased away with Touya, he never went back to the farm to check on things. He was convinced by Touya enough was enough and to let nature take its course. Every day he was worried she had probably died and failed the human woman he had promised. "She is much older. What a few summers does to humans, eh?"

The ice master growled angrily at Jin with an added shake of his head. "Next time you want to do something that reckless, I will make sure to leave you behind in the trouble, which is sure to arise." He grabbed one of the dead birds to begin his own feast. "And humans have the ability to age a bit faster then any other creature on this earth. I thought you knew that."

"I don't know. I usually just watch them from afar." He looked over his shoulder back in the direction of the village they had run from. "I have never put much attention into one lone human." He smiled a bit to himself. "It is nice to see that she actually still lives."

Touya could catch a few things in his tone, making him uneasy. "You better not travel back to where that entire mess happened many summers ago! I don't really think you realize how many lives you damaged that night!" He knew it was hard to bring it all up, but Touya was worried Jin was forgetting what happened that long ago. "You even hurt yourself."

Jin growled defensively at having to recall Silver. "I know that!" He snapped angrily. Sighing heavily, Jin now couldn't find it in him to stomach the food before him for the time being. All he could think about was the people he had let down. With the thought tearing at him, he slithered away from beside his friend and headed down the hill before to make it towards the river there.

"Jin," called Touya, "where are you going?" When the wind master didn't answer him, he looked down at the chickens they had killed with the intention of them both eating. "You should really eat before you wander off like this."

"I'll eat later!" Jin yelled back over his shoulder, not really interested in the thought of food. Making it to the edge of the riverbank, his scales rested upon each other as he gazed down at his own reflection, lost in thought. That night replaying in his mind, Jin tried to shake the images of when Silver fell right before his eyes because of what a knight had done to her. He had never felt so weak and powerless in all his years. Taking the tip of his tail, he dipped it into the water to disturb the surface and cause ripples to wave about. His frown of sadness melting into serious, he couldn't help but think about returning back to the farm. He remembered the knight at the farm had been there that night, and a part of him wanted revenge.

With the hours in the village running short, Neda wiped the sweat on her brow. "It sure is hot! I didn't expect so many people to buy as much as they did." With so much money to take back with her, Neda was unsure if another stop to a different village was even necessary. She usually traveled whenever she didn't get enough money from the first stop but a lot of villagers showed up. As Neda was about to pack up everything and head back to the farm, she remembered about Dalton's request before she did so. She had to admit to herself that the offer did sound inviting. Sighing heavily, Neda couldn't even stand the thought of standing him up, so she patted Black Rose on the cheek gently. "I'll be right back, Rose. Just watch over my belongings for me!" She waved her finger teasingly at the mare, making her way to the inn owned by the Copper family.

It was a two-story inn from what Neda could see from the outside, and it took up a fair bit of land in the village. "They must be quite wealthy," said Neda to herself at seeing the size of the building. Making her way to the front door, she opened it to peek inside to find the check-in desk. The woman there greeting her, she curtsied slightly. "Hello, I was asked to come here by a Dalton Copper?"

"Oh, yes, you must be the woman he spoke of," said the young ebony haired woman. She pointed down the hallway to the left of her desk. "If you go down this corridor, you will come to a door at the end. Take that door and you will be in the dinning area. He said he would be there waiting for you if I recall properly."

"Thank you." Neda waved goodbye to the young woman and made her way in the direction she was asked to take. Opening the door at the end of the hallway, she found Dalton there, sure enough, with a few other inn customers there. She waved at the young man with a slight smile. "Hey. I was told I would find you here."

"I am glad you took me up on that offer." He made his way over towards Neda, offering his hand only to have her withdraw the notion of accepting it. Dalton didn't make a big deal of it. Instead, he offered her to take a seat. "If you'd like, you can eat here."

"That's very kind of you, but I am afraid I have to be on my way." Neda moved some of the beige strands of her hair out of her face. She felt bad in the way of wanting to eat and run, but she knew she had to get her cargo back home safely. "I know you wouldn't let me live it down if I just took out of the village, but I have to make sure everything makes it back to the Cormac Farm safe and sound; especially after that incident this afternoon."

Dalton knew there was no way to complain about such a case. "I understand," he said reassuringly. "If anything, please take something with you before you head back to your farm." He grabbed the paper menu on one of the nearby wooden tables to hand over to Neda so she could make a decision. "Take whatever it is you wish. I don't mind paying for it."

"Dalton—," Neda began, only to be cut off once more.

"My family's money can cover such a free meal," he promised her. "If you come to our village again for selling anything, please, let me know, and I will be sure to help you best you can."

His offers seemed terribly kind and it made Neda wonder what was in it for him. "So, not that I am complaining, but why do you offer so much to me? You hardly even know me," she felt the need to point out while eyeing over the menu.

"During such tough times, everyone looks after each other," Dalton explained, as he turned around to head towards the back door from whence Neda first came from. "You come here to look after the villagers I take into my inn. This is the least I could do for someone who travels great distances to make sure people get what they need." Here, he bowed slightly before the young woman. "Make sure to tell the bartender that the meal is on me. I spoke of it all earlier to her."

Neda watched as Dalton left the room. Taking a deep breath, she checked the menu once more before deciding on what she was going to take back with her to the farm to nibble upon.

With the hours passing by and the moon high within the sky, Neda's black mare made her way towards the Cormac Farm. It was refreshing for her to be back at home. With the horse stopped right beside the house, she jumped from the cart to work on unloading for the last time that day. As she was doing so, she could hear the steady rocking of the rocking chair, which Lily usually was resting within. Turning her head to peer over her shoulder, she saw the woman sitting there per usual, staring at nothing in particular. "Still you stay there," she grunted while putting all of her weight into the heavy boxes and jars. "You just prefer to sit there all day and night?"

Lily turned her head slightly in the direction in which she could hear Neda, pressing a tender smile to her face. "What else could I be doing? Besides, it is nice to feel the warm, refreshing breeze. Wouldn't you agree?"

Neda couldn't help but chuckle a bit at the comment. "Well said, I do suppose." She wiped the sweat from her brow, feeling quite lethargic at just moving the three cases of cow milk. "There has got to be an easier way to load and unload all of this."

"Do you need help?" Lily asked with a tilt of her head, her blank eyes gazing off to the left.

"I am fine, Miss. Lily," Neda assured her. "I just don't have a lot of energy, apparently. Oh! Speaking of such things—," here she paused, digging through the back of the cart to find the meal she had preserved in a basket with fabric covering the top to conceal the freshness at least. "I was able to make off with dinner for us tonight, so you don't have to worry about making anything."

Lily pushed herself up from the chair she was within to make it over towards Neda with her walking stick in hand. "Where did you manage to grab a meal from? Usually such things are expensive if you don't make it yourself."

"Someone by the name of Dalton Copper gave it to me for free. He said it was the least he could do." Neda shrugged at the act of kindness, finding it nice all the same. When Lily came close enough, she handed over the basket to the woman so it could be taken inside.

"Dalton Copper? I think I have heard of that last name somewhere," Lily said, accepting the basket. "Did he by any chance say he owned an inn of some kind?"

"Yes," called Neda from the back of the cart. "He owned the inn at the town I was at."

"Ah, so the well known Copper family then. They own a string of inns around each town. Quite wealthy they are." She couldn't help but chuckle a bit at the odd affection from one of the family members. "It is nice he was so kind to you. You must have made quite the impression on him."

Neda looked through the opening of the back of the cart to show her unimpressed look at Lily, even if she couldn't see it. Adding a scoff at the situation, she pulled the last bit out and onto the ground for taking back inside to keep. "You and your hopeless romantic attitude, Lily." Neda made it back to where Black Rose was being kept hooked up to the carriage to unfasten the creature, taking her by the reins. "I'll go hose Rose off and put her up before coming back to get everything together. It shouldn't take me long."

"You should consider opening yourself up one of these days to the thought of love," Lily instantly insisted to the stubborn Neda. "I know you feel you don't need a man in your life, but he could do you some good."

Waving her hand at Lily's comments, she sighed. "Yeah, yeah, we'll discuss this later, I am sure."

When everything was back to the way it was to be for the evening, Lily and Neda both sat down for dinner together as they usually did. Neda was quiet, as she was trying to relax from the long day's work. She also didn't want to spark the conversation about how she needed a man in her life to make everything better. She heard it every now and again from Lily ever since Blythe got married off to Thane. "I guess tomorrow I will be taking my break for the time being. Maybe I can go and visit Blythe or something."

"Sounds like a good idea," said Lily from across the table, as she finished eating the bread, which came with the meal. "It is always best never to overwork yourself." With her meal done for the night, she moved back in her seat to excuse herself with the plates she had to clean. "I hope you two can have fun together."

"I am sure we will." Neda excused herself at that moment as well, taking her plate to the sink to work on cleaning it off. "I guess she is lucky to have who she does in her life." She seemed to give off an irritable sigh upon saying that. Lily was quick to catch it.

"And yet you sigh." She gazed over in the direction of where she could hear Neda from. "Is something bothering you?" Lily made sure the plate was clean before putting it back in the cupboard. "I have told you, finding a man is not too difficult. You have a few making advances towards you. Why not take them? What is that other man that you are always talking to—Nash?"

The winter elf did on occasion come down to the Eytheria Market, and Neda would run into him. She would often talk with him and catch up on a few things before he went back to his village. Never did she see the exchange they often did as anything involving a romantic love tryst. "You look into things too much," she insisted with a shake of her head. With her plate cleaned as well, she too put hers away. "It is really late, anyways, so I best head off to bed."

Lily nodded. She too was getting back into the habit of going to sleep when she was supposed to. "I agree." Limping over towards where the sofa was, she grabbed the quilt and fixed the pillow right where she wanted it. Neda had insisted on many occasions she didn't have to sleep there, but Lily was too used to it. "I will see you in the morning. Sleep well, Neda."

"Goodnight," called Neda from the staircase, as she headed off to her own room.

With the lights died down, Jin reappeared before the farmhouse they had left long ago. Jin was determined to meet up with that knight again and have his revenge. He had left the ice serpent back at their usually nesting spot, seeing as he knew Touya would be adamant against his coming back to the human farm. When the last candle blew out, Jin waited a moment or two before heading towards the front door to open it and let himself inside.

Everything was just as he recalled it from the times he last ventured into the human house. Not remembering or knowing of Lily on the sofa, he ignored her all together, as he slithered his way quietly and with haste up the stairs to try and find the man in iron. While the smell was faint, he could clearly catch it coming from inside of Neda's bedroom. Hissing lowly with anger, he made it to the young girl's bedroom, opening the door slowly, hoping to catch the element of surprise. When he made it inside, however, he found no traces of the blond human he remembered seeing around the farm. He recognized the room, however, as belonging to the young girls.

"Why do I smell it from within here?" He asked himself quietly, making it to the beds cautiously, as he could smell humans nearby. Getting closer to the clothes that Neda had worn that day, Jin grabbed onto the fabric to see that, sure enough, the smell was coming from those clothes. With Neda having been around the knights during the day, the scent wore off on her. "So he's not here…I wonder where he went."

With Neda stirring in her bed, Jin slunk to the floor quickly, not wishing to cause a riot. Finding that she was just turning in her bed, the redheaded demon slowly rose to peek over the bed to find the young girl slumbering there peacefully. He was still in shock and disbelief that Neda had managed to live so long without him nearby. Relieved that his promise was still kept, he reached over to touch her forehead gently. "I had hoped you would be okay at least," he whispered between them. Gazing over his shoulder, he found the other bed to be empty. "I just hope the other one is okay. I don't see her anywhere." Looking back down at Neda, he smiled tenderly before moving back down and out of sight towards the door. "Being without a clan or an alpha to tell me what to do, I believe I can say it is alright for me to stop by here and again. Maybe I will see you sometime soon." With that said, Jin quietly exited the door and the house all together, heading back towards the nesting site.


	25. Chapter 25

"Jin, wake up," Touya insisted from beside the slumbering wind serpent. Seeing his companion continuing to snore loudly to drown out his words, the ice master huffed irritably before focusing a great deal of frost power into his right palm. Placing his palm on Jin's shoulder, he managed to shock him awake. "About damn time."

"Great Gods above!" Jin hissed angrily, jumping awake from the frost shock. Seeing that it was his partner, he bared his teeth. "What's wrong with you!" He exclaimed angrily. He recoiled away from his friend, his elfin ears back to show his dismay in the way he was awoken.

Touya crossed his arms over his chest, his sky-blue eyes shifting up and down as if to look Jin over. "You disappeared last night. Where exactly did you wander off to?" He turned his head inquisitively, watching as Jin nervously backed away from him. "Jin?" Touya pried once more, not getting an answer. "Where did you go?"

Jin was scrunched up in an almost defensive position. He was still angry that he was awoken in such a rude way, so the redhead continued to glare at Touya. "I just went to back to the Cormac Farm for a little bit." He sighed at having to release that information, but he knew telling Touya the truth would only get him an earful of a lecture.

"Jin!" Touya hissed angrily, showing he wasn't pleased with his friend's choice. "What did I tell you about going back there!"

Sighing, Jin slithered the opposite direction of where Touya was standing to go about the day. "I just wanted to get revenge for what that knight did to Silver those many years ago." Having to be reminded of it, he couldn't help but look angrily off to the side. He hated having to recall how Silver's body fell to the ground in pain from being stabbed in the chest by a human weapon. Shaking the thought from his head, he huffed slightly while ducking under a nearby tree branch to continue through the woods.

"Jin," Touya began seriously, following behind his friend, "getting revenge on anyone isn't going to bring her back. It is just going to cause more problems."

"I know," Jin grumbled.

Touya shook his head with a heavy sigh, resting against a nearby tree for the moment. "It is best to move onwards from Silver. I understand how much she meant to you, but she is now part of the earth once more." He pushed himself off of the tree to continue a decent pace behind Jin the wind master.

"I am aware!" Jin exclaimed this time, stopping in his tracks to turn around to yell at Touya. He found it frustrating to be told things he already knew. Witnessing Touya's shocked expression over his reaction, Jin shifted his gaze from his friend. "I am aware that it won't do any bit of good to take revenge, but I need to put this restless feeling inside of me to sleep." Feeling the sun against his bare skin, Jin looked to the rising light. "All I know was I let her down. And I have to live with that every day I wake. I am tired of feeling like I failed her."

Moving cautiously over towards Jin, Touya's serpent half crunched the small twigs and dead leaves beneath his body. He placed a reassuring hand upon Jin's shoulder with a smile to his friend. "You did everything you could that night. I am sure Silver understands."

While a part of Jin knew this was true, he still couldn't find it within himself to subdue the angered part of him that refused to be caged by any means. He watched the sun continue to slowly come into the sky to light up the world around them, desiring to take it all in with hopes of forgetting the past.

The road further ahead began to rumble as a black mare suddenly stormed across the plains of Eytheria. Neda upon Black Rose's back, she hurried the horse to the market place, as she had promised to meet a friend within the protective walls. With the walls made of stone coming slowly into view just over the hills, she smiled widely. "Come on, Rose! You can go faster than this!" When the mare picked up pace, she threw her hands up in the air with her beige hair whipping about wildly behind her.

The drawbridge down for them to cross, the two made it past the guards without them prompting her to stop, as she didn't have any goods with her that needed to be checked. The guards at the front of the bridge usually only stopped people peddling goods just to make sure nothing illegal was within them. The horse's hooves clopping on the hard land, Neda managed to slow the creature down so as not to hurt her from running at a fast pace on such a rough ground. Pulling back on the reins a bit more, she recognized the surroundings about her. Looking about the crowd of people, Neda pinpointed the person she was searching for. "Nash!" She called with a wave of her hand, nudging her heels into Rose's sides. "Nash, over here!"

The winter elf looked over his shoulder to find Neda coming his way. He smiled in return to her, waving her down. "Neda," he said in return, making his way towards her. "I didn't expect you to be here so early." His white hair was quite long, reaching his knees. He kept it usually tied back in some fashion. That day he had some of the strands up front tied back in braids to keep the rest of his hair away from his face with a few feathers decorating his silver tresses. Nothing else changed over the years regarding his appearance.

"I thought I would race against time just to see how early I could get here," Neda explained, as she dismounted her horse thanks to Nash's help. "Besides, I know Rose is really good at running. I just want to see her put those legs of hers to the test." Handing her horse over to the local stable keep, she grabbed the fabric of her dress to make way for her brown boots. "So, what do you have in plan today?"

"I found exploring these human places to be fascinating," explained Nash, as he guided Neda through the northern area of the market place. "But as I was exploring, I came upon this one place to the north that consists of a small room for people to dance with one another."

Neda gave Nash a rather weird look at hearing of such a place. "Dance? You know I don't dance well…actually, come to think of it, I don't dance at all!" She never gave much thought into dancing. It made her feel weird having to follow a man around on a floor in fancy attire.

"If you're ever going to attend anything regarding the palace, you might want to learn a few things," Nash insisted with a brief chuckle. The door of the place coming into view, he looked up at the swinging sign made of wood. There were no words on the sign, merely a design of a couple dancing. Opening the door, he directed Neda on inside. "Ladies first."

Chuckling softly at his gentleman attitude, Neda took his escorting hand and walked on inside of the building. "Thank you, kind sir," she spoke jokingly, even if he was being sincere in his actions. Stepping inside, she found the interior to be mostly an open space for people to practice dancing upon. It was made of wood and on the outer areas of the room there were places to sit upon. "If I make a fool of myself, it is on your head, Nash," she mumbled, upon noticing the other people there.

He muffled his soft laugh against his fist, turning Neda around to direct her hands on the right places of his body. "You won't make a fool of yourself, because I am here." Holding her right hand, he placed his other upon her hip to guide her about the room in a graceful rhythm. "All you have to do is follow my footsteps." He could tell she was nervously trying to keep up with him as it was. "Just pretend like you're following me about the town. Dancing can be that simple—," here, he spun Neda outwards before pulling her back in. "—with a few added moves, of course."

"Where does a winter elf learn to dance like this?" Neda asked curiously, keeping her eyes on his. She felt her feet nearly dragging around the floor, as she was trying to anticipate his every move.

"Even us 'barbarians' need to have some form of class," Nash insisted with a shake of his head. "I promise our society isn't all tactless."

She could tell in some of his words she had offended him. "I apologize, Nash. I guess I just never get the chance to learn much about you and your people except from the books here," she explained, as she was spun away from the winter elf again only to be pulled gracefully back.

"And those books are written by the narrow minded." His tone was a bit spiteful. "If you ever desired to, I could easily take you to my clan." Seeing the shocked look upon her face, he shrugged slightly against her hand, which was upon his shoulder. "It would do you some good to see what our people are actually like instead of reading it from people who view our ways as barbaric."

Neda was so caught up in his suggestion that she wasn't paying attention to her feet anymore. They were actually keeping up with Nash's as her mind wandered. "I do suppose it is a thought," she said nervously. The dance between the two soon ending with the song being played in the background by the musicians, Neda stared long and hard at Nash's narrow, piercing blue eyes, which looked right back at her with a neutral expression. She knew he was serious about his comment, but was unaware if she should consider it. The applaud breaking her concentration for the moment, she pulled her hand from Nash's to watch as the spectators were applauding those who showed what they had on the dance floor. With being brought back to reality, she took in a deep breath and hurried out the door.

"Neda!" Nash called between them, watching as she made haste for the exit. Hurrying after her, he made it back out into the cobblestone streets to find her trying to make it back towards the stable, so she could grab her horse and go home. "Wait! I didn't mean to startle you with such a proposal!"

Stopping in her footsteps, Neda looked over her shoulder at Nash. She frowned at him, her fists firmly at her sides. "I just…that is a big thing for you to ask," she explained. "I know all of those books can be one-sided, but I would feel like a complete outsider."

Nash couldn't help but lift one brow at her. "You mean like how I feel here everyday?" He inquired matter-of-factly. When Neda went quiet, he walked up towards the young woman. "I promise, if you ever went to my tribe, you would see probably some interesting things, but nothing too different from what you witness here." Upon seeing her consider it in her movements and expression, he smiled tenderly. "You don't have to consider it right now but just think on it."

"You always know how to throw in a surprising act, Nash," said Neda, as they headed on their way through the town.

"I have my moments. Besides, it would be good for you to see how we actually live." Turning the corner up ahead, he headed towards the western gate, so that they could head outside for a moment at the very least. "I promise we are nothing like those beasts they portray us to be." The suns rays beating down on him, he walked down the stone walkway, which led to the grasslands about the western gate in hopes of finding a nice, relaxing spot.

In the distance, Jin was slithering around cautiously to watch as Neda made her appearance once more. He had been tracking her smell since after his breakfast and noticed that it had gone into the human market place. When he could sense her coming outside, he quickly hid off to the side in the tall grass. "A winter elf?" He said to himself mostly, hurrying over towards the rock formation to the right of him to get a better look and hide himself more. "What is one doing all the way out here?" Jin had better knowledge of races other than humans, as most weren't hostile towards serpent demons. He had known of the winter elf race for some time; especially since one clan almost mistook Touya as some form of god.

"I guess a lot of our literature is one-sided at times." Neda watched the trees shake gently from the subtle wind about them. For a moment, she was lost within nature's beauty.

Nash smiled, looking down upon her. "It is wise to take such a thing like that into consideration. Not every race in Eytheria is barbaric though humans place such a judgment, as they do not understand. And while some things may appear aggressive, usually they are for reasons." Looking up at the positioning of the sun, Nash sighed heavily. "I do suppose it is time I head back to my clan. It'll be nightfall by the time I get there."

Locked in thought by what Nash had just said to her, she turned around to watch the elf whistle for his steed. He rarely ever gave it to the stable keep in the Eytheria Market Place, as Nash explained he never trusted the guy. The white horse with black speckles on the coat trotted over to his master. "Thanks for spending time with me, Nash," Neda finally spoke, watching Nash mount up on the horse.

"Anytime, Neda. Just be careful going home tonight." His heels meeting with the horse's side, the steed took off into the distance.

Neda knew she might as well get out of the market area herself. She wasn't in a desire to go home, but anytime she was within town, it made her nervous that she may very well run into Thane. While she was able to stand the knight to a degree thanks to him saving her life that night, she still found it very hard to speak with him.

With her horse soon retrieved from the stables, Neda set off not towards home but to a nearby riverbank not too far from the castle walls. Stopping Rose just inches from it so the mare could graze, the young woman pulled out her pad and paper to sit down at the bank to start sketching in solitude, or so she thought.

Jin slithered in the background quietly, making sure he didn't startle the horse or alert Neda to where he was. There wasn't many places to hide given the plain atmosphere. He made sure to try and stay low in the grass, watching from just around the hillside. Inside, he couldn't help but feel relieved many times over that Neda was all right. "I cannot believe how fast humans grow," he said to himself in the distance. "It has been so long since I last caught the smell of the other sister, I don't know if she is even around anymore." The thought was bothering him a little. He had promised Pearl he would make sure they were both okay, and he was hoping he put them both in the right hands.

Neda looked up from her piece of paper she was drawing on with her pen. She felt as though someone were watching her at that moment, causing her to turn around to find nothing out there but Rose grazing contently. "Hello?" She called, getting to her feet to make sure. "Anybody out there?" With the wind moving about the grass contently, Neda felt a bit eased by it all. "I guess there is nothing there." Hearing a slight thundering in the distance, Neda looked over her shoulder to see storm clouds bellowing in. "I guess I better hurry and get home." Putting away her paper and pen in the bag she had hanging over her shoulder, Neda hurried towards Rose to swing herself on top of the horse.

Jin watched from where he was hiding as Neda ran off in the direction of the woods. "Foolish human! Why would she run through there!" He growled to himself, hurrying after her, knowing it wasn't safe.

Neda felt the fastest way back home was a shortcut she often took through the woods. She knew on occasion it wasn't safe; especially if a storm was approaching, but she felt it was her best bet at the moment. The thundering getting worse and the lightening striking the ground, Neda tried her best not to glance over her shoulder. The sounds frightening her, the farm girl could feel the rain tapping upon her body soon enough. "The rain is already upon us, Rose," she breathed heavily down to the horse, feeling a bit frantic inside to get back to the farm. "You have to hurry!"

The pounding of the hooves alerting the nearby serpent demons, the narrow eyes of the demons pierced through the darkness to catch the human female dashing by. One in particular couldn't help but smirk in delight at the current weather and the woman's position. Raising his middle finger to the sky, he beckoned to the lightening, causing the bolt to strike down in front of the horse to startle the poor creature and cause Neda to go flying from the mare's back. When the woman landed in the dirt with a heavy thud, the demon made his appearance beside her. His primary scales made of almost a golden color and a pink underbelly. Using the tip of his tail, he touched the unconscious Neda to make sure she was out for the time being.

"It is so easy to get these poor beasts off course," the demon snickered, slowly guiding his serpent body about her in hopes of crushing her bones and squeezing the life out of her.

Jin coming into view, he quickly reached his hand out with a shake of his head. "Suzaku—**STOP**!"

Hearing the all too familiar voice, the demon serpent, Suzaku turned his head to meet eye to eye with Jin. "Jin…my little brother." Here he smirked evilly with a toss of his wild, blond hair, which was now getting soaked in the downpour. "How long has it been?" He bared his fangs with an annoyed hiss and added growl. "You left my nest forever ago, brother. Why dare show yourself in the parts where I live?"

"Let the human go," Jin demanded to his elder brother, knowing how stubborn the lightening user could be. "She doesn't mean any harm to you."

Suzaku looked over at the passed out woman with a sneer before gazing back at Jin through the lightening flashes, which persisted throughout the clouded sky. "So you've come to love these horrible, fragile creatures, have you?" He could see it in Jin's eyes from where he was standing. "I guess that old alpha of yours let you get too close to them."

"Leave Dustin out of this one, Suzaku." Jin hated having to think of the demon he felt he betrayed and let down. "Only the higher power can say what a better brother he was compared to you!"

Not phased by the comment, though the others in his clan threatened to attack, Suzaku raised his hand to silence those in his nest. "And here I thought you didn't believe in any higher power. Fascinating." His serpent half still tightening about Neda's body, he grinned darkly. "Attached to this creature, are you?" Showing Jin his sharp nails, he moved them down to Neda's exposed neck. "I think you have forgotten what was decided years ago, my brother. If any human was to be spotted, they were to be killed on sight."

Jin watched nervously as Suzaku moved the flat part of his nail against Neda's throat. "I am aware of that fact," he answered coldly to his brother. "But for personal reasons, this one is off limits to that law."

"Is that so?" Suzaku's eyes narrowed, as he than used his nail to pierce Neda's skin to cut a long line across the side of her neck to cause her blood to bubble forth and flow from the cut he created.

"Suzaku!" Jin yelled angrily with a hiss. "I understand what anger you have for the human race, but this girl shouldn't be part of that!" He stopped inches from his brother's face knowing that if he got any closer, the others would attack him. "Let her go, and I will leave you be, but if you dare kill her in front of me, I will attack you all, and I will kill you, brother!" Jin warned Suzaku in a very low and angry tone.

The lightening demon knew that his younger brother wasn't kidding. He scoffed at Jin's attitude, releasing his hold on Neda's body to toss her at the wind demon. "So damn soft, as always," he grumbled aloud, moving away from Jin. Slithering back off of the dirt trail, he nodded at his nest to continue onwards. "If you don't watch what you're doing, Jin, you're going to get yourself killed, and I will refuse to hold that on my shoulders. If you die, that's your own fault."

He could hint a bit of worry within his elder brother's tone, but he knew most of it was just Suzaku wanting to wash the thought of it from his hands and mind. Jin shook his head at his elder brother, looking down at the injured Neda. "I need to get you out of this rain." He sniffed the air around him, not smelling anything that would give him any indication that the farm was near. "We may have to stop somewhere for the night."

Jin managed to find a rock formation not too far away that had enough cover for him to hide Neda within. Making sure her body was completely out of the rain, he moved her long, fawn colored hair out of the way to look at the wound Suzaku had intentionally placed upon her. "With the amount of sleep toxins his nails no doubt put into your system, you should be out for awhile, I would hope." Hearing the leaves crunch about nearby, Jin got on alert. "Who is there?" Nobody answering back, he remained ready to attack with his poisonous teeth bared until relaxing at seeing his friend come into view. "Touya? How did you find me?"

Touya made his way inside as well, sheltering himself from the rain. "You're not the only one who is good at stealthily following someone around." He sighed with a shake of his wet hair. "I've been following you since you left earlier in the day to track down this woman." Smelling and spying the blood, he hissed irritably. "What happened? What did you do!"

"Suzaku," Jin merely mentioned, his eyes narrowed with anger and hate.

"Suzaku?" Touya looked around the area confused, smelling of the air as well. "He isn't around anymore, is he? What was he doing all the way out here?"

"No, he left sometime ago." Having to be reminded of his brother was a bit painful for Jin. He didn't wish to continue onwards with the conversation.

"I can see he left his mark on her." Touya placed his cold hand on Neda's neck. "He didn't bite her, did he?" Seeing Jin shake his head, the ice master was relieved. There was not much that could be done if a serpent demon bit a human if it wasn't treated right away. "Wait right here," Touya demanded, making his leave momentarily.

Jin did as he was asked this time. Turning to the sleeping Neda, he placed his hand on her forehead to move some of her stray hairs away from her face. "It has been so many moons since I last saw you." He admired the way she looked in her new elder form. In a way, he was almost reminded of Pearl with how she was sleeping. It brought a painful reminder of Pearl reaching up to him before she died. Shaking the horrible memory from his mind, he cupped Neda's head with his tail.

Touya hurried back with all that was needed to make sure Neda was going to be okay. "This should help her injury heal." With him, he had a paluu tree leaf with some kind of berries on it. "Since I last got to know Kurama back at the old nest, I was able to learn a few things from him, as well as learn on my own afterwards. These voltru berry juice will subdue the pain she is feeling if I apply it on the injury. It'll help her heal."

Looking down at the dress Neda was wearing, Jin ripped a part of it off at the bottom to give Touya something to apply it on. "Here, try this."

"I could have used the tree leaf with honey to keep it in place," Touya suggested with a confused shrug.

"I know, but this is more of a human way to do things. The last thing we need to do is wrap her up in our way," Jin explained. "Just wrap the fabric gently about her neck after you put the berry juice on it."

Touya wasn't about to argue, so he took the fabric from Jin and began to do what he suggested. When the juice met with Neda's injury, he felt the girl tense and moan from the pain of the reaction at first. It caused Touya to pause in his actions. "She is out cold, right? You said Suzaku did use his nails, yes?"

"She isn't going to wake up for awhile," Jin assured his friend. "Suzaku's nails must have pumped a good bit into her system."

"I just hope he didn't overdo it." Touya placed his hands upon Neda's cheek. "She is quite warm. Being so soaked, she might get sick." He knew what it would lead to, but a part of him felt uncomfortable doing it. "I can make a fire if need be but, seeing as she is your charge, you're going to have to remove her clothes."

"Remove her clothes?" Jin asked a bit confused, twitching his elfin like ear. "You mean…all of it?"

"All of it, or she will get sick!" Touya added, scurrying out of the area to find what he would need to make a fire.

Jin took in a deep breath, as he reached for Neda's dress. He knew he had to remove her for her sake, even if he was nervous in doing so. Helping her out of the soaking wet attire, he felt her body begin to tremble. Knowing she was just cold, he moved her closer to him while wrapping his serpent body about her human form cautiously to try and keep her warm. "You're going to be okay. I promise," he whispered in her ear.

When the fire was soon in place thanks to Touya, Jin made sure that Neda was close enough to it, so she could get dried off. Her trembling did eventually stop upon her body and hair drying. Jin moved the palm of his hand carefully about her face to make sure she remained asleep for the time being. "Even years later, you still manage to find your way into trouble," he chuckled at the relief of her at least being okay. "The way her hair flows reminds me of Silver almost…"

Catching Jin's words over the crackling of the fire, Touya shook his head. "Jin, don't go there. I know what you're thinking, and that is a bad idea. Not to mention, it is impossible given who and what you are and her feelings towards your kind."

"Just once I'd like to be able to walk around and see what it is like to be a human. See what the world is like through their eyes," Jin explained. He felt the desire was innocent enough. He was tired of being hunted by human weapons and feel as though the world didn't belong to him.

"Given that chance, you would still be an outsider!" Touya exclaimed quietly between them. "Jin, you know nothing about their world." He was quiet for a moment before finding his words again. "I know you're upset Silver died by their hands, and I know there is no replacement for her, but you need to go searching for your own kind."

"But where?" Asked the redhead with a somber sigh. "After that attack, most of the serpent demons were either wiped out or I am forbidden to even go see. There are no females left around here. If there are, I would be lucky to find one not but a carcass!"

Touya knew Jin was right. If any female serpent demon were ever left alive, a knight would always find her and kill her with ease if they had no mate to protect them. "Do you really want this silly wish of yours to come true?" Seeing Jin not really respond to it, Touya rolled his eyes. "Look, after we drop the human off later in the night, we will stop by Suzuka's house. That man works for human and demon alike, and he has created the most amazing potions and weapons I have ever known of. He may be able to help."

"I just want to try this one thing," Jin insisted quietly between them. "Maybe I won't resent the humans as much if I try seeing things through their eyes. Or better yet, maybe I can enlighten them as Lily and her father once tried."

"All I ask of you is to be careful," said Touya. "If Suzuka can really make such a potion, I worry about what it may do to you and your body." Deep down, the ice master couldn't help but feel sick to his stomach over the mere thought of it actually working and Jin remaining as a human permanently. Sighing out his frustrations, he removed himself from the fire. "I will return shortly with food. Just watch over her till I return." Wishing to take his mind off of things as well, Touya made his way out into the woods to be alone.


	26. Chapter 26

When the sun steadily rose back within the sky, Jin made it back to the Cormac Farm with Neda in his arms. Touya trailed behind him, making sure they were in the clear upon reaching the farm once more. Seeing that no knights were nearby, the redhead made his way to the front of the house slowly and cautiously. The weight of his body creaked the floorboards of the porch upon making it up to the front door.

Seeing Jin about to open the door made Touya hiss. "Jin! Just leave her on the chair right there, and let's go!"

"I don't want her to be outside," Jin responded, opening the door with his tail acting as an extra hand for himself. The scales rubbed against the doorknob to slowly open it. Ducking his head inside, close to the floor, Jin sniffed the air to see if there was any sign of the human knight. Moving the door to the side to enter the house, he continued to pick up signs of another human within the building. "There is someone else in here somewhere…I can sense it."

Touya cautiously made his way inside behind Jin. Remaining low to the ground out of instinct of being in a human area, he crawled his way to the smell. Moving just around one of the chairs, he spotted the sleeping Lily lying on the sofa. "It's…it's that woman!" He exclaimed quietly, waving Jin over.

Jin hurried over towards his friend to spy the elder Lily. Seeing the wrinkles on her face, he was a bit dumbfounded by the extreme change the woman went through. "She is…old." Being as quiet as possible, Jin moved closer to Lily to make sure he didn't wake her. "I never expected so many moons to do this to her body." Keeping Neda in his arms, he moved some of Lily's hair out of her face with the tip of his tail.

"Once again, Jin, human's age faster. They have a short lifespan." Touya's eyes shifted over Lily's older form with a shrug of his shoulders. "She isn't that much different. She just has lines on her face and lighter hair. Just put Neda in her bed and let's go."

Even if he had the desire to wake Lily and say hello to her, Jin knew it probably wasn't wise. He also wasn't sure if the woman even remembered him. Catching one last look at Lily, he made his way quickly up the human stairs to find his way back to Neda's bedroom. Making it over towards her bed, he carefully placed her on top of the mattress of her bed. "She should be safer here." Removing Neda's boots from her feet, Jin got the covers to cover up the slumbering woman.

Touya listened to every sound that the human house would make, prompting his heart to beat a bit faster in nervousness. "Alright, she is safe. Now, let's get out of here!" He continued to urge Jin to move out the door until finally witnessing his friend moving in his direction. Standing to the side to let Jin through, Touya took one last quick look in the bedroom before hurrying behind the wind master.

"I am sure Lily will find Neda upstairs soon enough." Jin was trying to reassure himself, as they made their escape back into the woods surrounding the front of the house. When Touya didn't say anything to acknowledge he heard the comment, he thought back on what Touya had said earlier. "So about Suzuka…."

Letting out a heavy sigh, the ice master stopped in his tracks to look over his shoulder at the wind demon. "Jin, you're not seriously considering that option, are you?" Ducking under a nearby branch in his way, he continued down the hillside in hopes of finding a safe place for the two of them to lounge together. "When I said that, I was just joking. I didn't expect you to go through with it."

"Why wouldn't I?" Jin asked, following closely behind Touya. "Imagine the possibilities if you were able to walk around as a human." He was hoping he could encourage his partner to join him on this crazy journey he had in mind. "Think of what you could do!"

"It wouldn't be our world!" Touya exclaimed defiantly. Catching the shocked look on Jin's face, Touya shook his head before guiding his fingers through his bi-colored hair. "Listen, Jin, I understand your desire to do this, but I think it is the biggest mistake ever, and I am sorry I ever brought it up." When Jin didn't respond back, he knew he probably hurt him. Massaging in between his eyes, he tried to reside the pain he could feel in between them. "But I guess if this is something you want to do…I can take you to see Suzuka."

Something seemed to be bothering Touya, but Jin didn't pry into the situation. He smiled to express his appreciation. "Thank you for this, Touya."

"However, Jin," Touya began forlornly, "if you go through with this, you are on your own." He waved for his friend to follow him to the southeast. "I refuse to turn myself into one of those creatures for any amount of time. If you become human, I won't follow behind you on this one."

"W-Why not?" Jin asked curiously, grabbing onto Touya's arm to make him stop to talk to him for a moment.

Touya was silent momentarily, trying to gather his words as they stood near an upcoming dirt road. "Because I feel this is just something you need to go through alone." He leaned against a nearby tree to support himself, as his body was feeling awfully heavy suddenly considering the emotional weight on him. "Just promise me you'll be careful when you do this."

Jin was unsure of what to say other than nod to show he would do so. Crossing into the road, they followed it south. The trees limbs towering over their path rustled slightly in the tranquil wind. "I have never been to Suzuka at all. I have heard about him from Dustin here and there but that was it."

"There never is a big reason to ever go to Suzuka unless you want the impossible done," Touya explained. "I can imagine once Dustin maybe went to go see him for something. I am not sure what for exactly." The ice master seemed to pause to look at one of the nearby trees, which had an awkward scrape upon the bark. Rubbing his fingers against the mark, he found it to be made by some human weapon. He knew it meant humans walked up and down the path leading to Suzuka's but it didn't surprise him as the man helped both humans and demons. People considered him a wizard as wizards and witches were usually defined as people who worked for anybody and any side. "I am sure whatever he went to see him for was probably important," he mumbled, as Touya was thinking to himself for the most part. Smelling of the air, he couldn't pick up traces of any knights going by. "Be careful and stay close to the woods. Humans walk up and down these roads for the most part."

"I guess humans need more help from him than anyone," said Jin, as he did as he was instructed. "I can only wonder what Dustin went to Suzuka for in the past." He couldn't help but be curious though he knew there would be no way of finding it out now.

The woods began to get thicker as the road progressed. Touya stopped towards the end of the road to find one of the trails leading off towards Suzuka's house, though the dirt passageway was almost disappearing completely due to rocks and grass growing over the area. "This way," he beckoned, ducking back into the woods to try and follow the disappearing trail. "I guess over the years, nobody bothers to keep this road on the map."

"With him being a wizard, I wouldn't doubt it. Nobody holds them in high regard." Moving some of the naked branches out of the way, Jin noticed things seemed to get a bit darker and drearier the further in they went. Some harmless green snakes lowered from the branches to eye the two demons as they passed. Everything almost appeared as though it were in a swamp with the mist gathering on the ground and all of the plants and trees looking dead. "I could have sworn he was a man of 'beautifulness' if I was told correctly by some stories. Why would he live out here?"

Touya spread the bushes up ahead to stand aside in attempts to show Jin where the house was located. Everything in the clearing looked lush and green. Fresh mushrooms lined the area and the bright sun shined through the canopy above to light up the small building in vibrant colors. "Does that look beautiful enough for you?" He asked with a bit of sarcasm, as he made his way towards the house.

Jin looked about the area in disbelief at how quickly the atmosphere changed. Not attempting to question it, he hurried behind Touya to make it towards the door. "This is all so weird."

"Well, Jin, you can either knock or just turn back." Touya moved aside so Jin could make his decision. "It is your choice."

Knowing that it would be pointless to come that far just to turn away, Jin turned back to the door to get ready to knock on it only to have his knuckles stop inches from the door when it opened slowly on its own. Confused by that, Jin looked dumbfounded at his partner behind him with his mouth slightly opened. With Touya obviously not having an answer, Jin moved inside of the house.

The inside was just as colorful as the outside. Seeing nothing but a hallway before him, Jin cautiously slithered further down the wooden floorboards. The door shutting magically behind him when he got midway there startled him only slightly. Resuming down the corridor, he made it to the room at the end of the hallway. The room was mostly filled with potions lining the shelves and a few beakers filled with different colored fluids. The room was dark for the most part and lit by a few candles here and there. Taking interest in some of the bottled fluids, he about touched one only to have his hand slapped away. "Hey!" He exclaimed, waving it slightly to make the sting stop.

"Don't touch that!" Suzuka demanded, making his appearance on the opposite side of the table containing his beakers of potions and concoctions. Stepping closer into the lit candles, the blond haired demon raised his brow at the serpent demon with his blue cape moving forward slightly with his actions. "What is it? What do you want?"

"Are you…Suzuka?" Jin wondered, as he had never seen the man up close and personal before.

"The one and only," he remarked, heading over to a weird looking cauldron he had in the room. The almost tentacle looking cauldron opening up when Suzuka got close enough, he began to poor some of the potions and liquids into it. "So what exactly do you want from me?"

When the combined mixtures exploded in the cauldron, Jin covered his mouth and waved the red smoke away from his face. "I heard you can make anything," he managed to get out through his coughs. "And I was curious if you could make me a potion or cast a spell that could turn me human."

Hearing of such a demand, Suzuka paused briefly in his work to look at Jin from across the cauldron. "You want to become human?" He would occasional shift his eyes from the potions in his hands back to Jin. "Is there any reason in particular why?" Before the wind demon could open his mouth to explain, Suzuka halted his words with a wave of his hand. "Maybe this can tell us." He hand his hands on either side of the tentacle like opening of the cauldron. Suzuka beckoned Jin over with a wave of his finger. "Come here." When Jin refused to move at first, he said it a bit firmer. "Come-here."

Jin made his way over to the large pot to look into the swirling red and gold water. When he got close enough, the liquid began to stir a bit violently before part of it turned into mist to swirl around to show an image it could sense within Jin's mind. His eyes widened as it produced an image of Neda. "It is amazing."

"Aaah, so you have unrequited love on the other side?" Suzuka wondered, catching the image as well from where he was standing.

Scoffing at the notion, Jin shook his head. "No! I don't love her like that." He turned back to the moving image of Neda. "I was asked by their mother to watch over her and her sister, but she thought I killed them to begin with. I wanted to cross over to get a better idea of taking care of her again and to make sure that I can tell her that it wasn't us who intentionally did it."

Suzuka waved away the picture by gesturing his hand through the smoke picture. "Anyways, if you're that interested to become human, I can easily make a potion for you to take." Here, he made his way to the large book of spells he kept not too far away from beside his bed. Unlocking the book, he turned a few pages knowing he had a recipe for the potion somewhere. "I never used it often, because it is a type of forbidden potion of mine."

"Forbidden?" Jin questioned a bit nervously. "How is it forbidden?"

"It is never meant for demons to crossover into the human world is why." He ran his fingers over the encrypted text in front of him before turning a few more pages to find what he was looking for. "Here we go!" Memorizing the ingredients, he made his way back over to the wooden table where most of his potions were. "I am afraid the potion isn't going to be long term. When you drink this potion, you'll have a year to spend with this girl and get whatever message you need across to her. I would say that is fair and enough time, right?"

Jin watched as Suzuka started to work away at pouring the right liquids to prompt the concoction to work. "It is fair. It should prove to be more than enough time." He lightly tapped one of the nearby beakers to watch the liquid inside react. "Other than what you said, it is completely safe…right?"

Grabbing a few bead like objects and what appeared to be salt in texture and color, Suzuka began to mix the two together in a single bowl in front of him. "It should be! I have performed it a few times in the past. I've been trying to work on making it a permanent transformation, but the potion can be weak without the right things, you know." He brought in a few more ingredients to add to it before the potion puffed up a slight red smoke to show that it was finished. "There we go!" Waving his hand over it slightly, he mumbled a few words under his breath before grabbing a smaller tube to put the potion in with a cork in the top to hand over to Jin. "There. I would suggest drinking it somewhere close to a town. The transformation may really wear you out to the point you pass out. You will want someone to find you, as you will no longer be a demon but a human, thus, you will be as powerless as one."

Hearing he would lose his powers made Jin nervous, as he took the potion. "What-what am I to do then if I lose the ability to control wind!" He exclaimed between them. "How will I protect myself?"

Suzuka made his way over towards Jin to place his hand on the demon's shoulder, ushering him down towards the exit. "Well now, you'll be walking amongst humans! Usually your protection is that in form of the knights. Now, if you need anything else, let me know." Opening the door with a wave of his hand, he made sure Jin stepped outside. "But right now, I have other things that need to be done!"

The door shut in front of his face, Jin turned his focus to the potion he now held in his hands. Eyeing the house once last time, he slowly backed away from it. Slithering over the tall, green grass and over a few flowers, he made it over towards the opening of the dreary woods. "Jin," Touya's voice called from the other end of the clearing. Jin stopped in his tracks to spy his friend. "How did it go?"

Jin showed off the vile in his hands. The liquid swirled about as if it were alive. "He told me it will last for a years time, and that is all I will get." Knowing that the moon would rise eventually, he hurried back through the surrounding, dead woodlands back towards the Cormac Farm. "I know I have to take this near the farm. She will see me soon enough to fetch my body."

"That isn't a wise idea," Touya insisted, grabbing Jin's shoulder to stop him momentarily. "If you want to take this potion and be noticed, it is wisest to do this closest to a trade route humans usually take into major towns or cities." He didn't want Jin to take it right outside of the farm to possibly be out cold and vulnerable for awhile. "Even if your point is to find Neda and talk to her, your best bet would to be around many humans to understand how they act. Otherwise, you'll probably go right to her, and she'll know for sure what you are."

Jin sighed, wishing he could just go right to the source. "So where do you suggest I go to?"

Touya cupped his chin as if to think. An idea popping into his head, he grinned a bit before grabbing Jin's wrist and hurried towards the direction of the town he could think of. "The one that you stole the chickens from," he reminded Jin, as he tried to race against the sun in the sky. "There is a spot not too far from there that I have seen humans travel on. If you use the potion there, you will get spotted and turned into the town."

The two demons raced towards the village, as they had a lot of road to cover if they were going to make it before the ending day.

The sun about to set for the day, Touya and Jin managed to make it to the human town. Hiding in the nearby foliage, the ice master pointed to a stream up ahead that had a small bridge built over it to allow carts to pass over the water safely. "That area is your best and safest bet." He turned Jin around to have the wind master look into his eyes. "I need you to promise me, Jin, that you'll be okay. For a year I won't be able to speak with you." Touya hid the fact that, deep down, he was upset he'd have to spend so many moons alone.

Jin nodded almost hesitantly before hugging Touya tightly. "I promise I will do my best." Not wishing to part from his friend too quickly, he knew he had better if he were to walk amongst the humans. Parting from the embrace, he smiled down at the ice master. "Just stay in our nesting spot, and I will try my best to visit you whenever possible."

Touya looked down at the ground beneath their scales before shifting his narrow eyes back up at Jin. "A pleasant lie, that." A smile was still upon his lips regardless of what he thought about Jin's words. "Now, hurry," he encouraged with a smile, pointing where Jin needed to go.

Making his way out of the bushes cautiously, he held the potion close to his bare chest. Taking in a deep breath, he moved towards the bridge before pulling the cork off of the vile with his sharp nail. Tossing the cork off to the side, he nervously held the vile up to his eyes first. "Here goes nothing…" Moving it closer to his lips, he drank the liquid down quickly. As soon as it made it into his system, Jin could feel his body going through the painful transformation.

Throwing the vile off to the side, he grabbed onto his throat while coughing violently. His body shifting into that of a human, his bones began to crunch to mold into the proper shape of one. Digging his nails into the ground, he panted heavily through his nostrils when his serpent half slip in half to make way for legs. The scales disappearing slowly off of his body, his fangs soon did as well as the horn on top of his head. His ears shrunk down to human size as his nails did the same. Feeling completely exhausted, Jin closed his eyes and passed out on the ground, as Suzuka expected would happen.

Touya waited in the shadows for somebody to come along to help his friend. "Come on," he whispered to himself, eyeing Jin's body closely to make sure nothing tried to attack him. Feeling the ground beneath him shake, he hissed lowly to himself knowing the vibrations were that of humans. Gazing over the white bridge, he spotted a rider coming from the opposite side of the river. His narrow, sky-blue eyes shifted back over to Jin's body hoping that the rider would spot him.

The peach colored stallion hurried across the land in hopes of reaching the town with the young, male rider on the steed's back. His pale lavender eyes spotting the body of the former wind master, he pulled back on the reins quickly. "Whoa!" The horse letting out a startled neigh, the man managed to keep the horse under control before dismounting to make his way over towards Jin. "Where did you come from?" He whispered to himself. His layered, blond and black tipped hair, which didn't make it into his ponytail, fell down about his face when he examined Jin's body.

Continuing to watch from the sidelines, his nails racked nervously against the bark of the tree he was hiding slightly behind. Touya was still very nervous of this idea. With the man so close to Jin's fragile and vulnerable body, he was ready to spring into action to save his friend if the human man tried anything Touya didn't approve of.

Looking for any injuries on Jin, the man saw nothing. "Well, you don't appear to be hurt." Grabbing onto Jin's arm, the man helped the unconscious demon to his feet to help him onto the back of his horse. Seeing as Jin was rather heavy, he merely helped the wind master over the back of his horse gently to allow him to lie over the side of the mount before pulling upon the saddle to situation himself. Heeling the horse in the sides, he headed towards Neldron Village.

Touya witnessing Jin being taken into human care made him relieved and worried at the same time. Ducking back behind the tree, he sighed heavily before heading back to their nesting site they had claimed deeper into the woods.

Jin cringed a bit when he was coming to his senses. Slowly he opened his eyes to find everything a big blur. "What-what happened…?" He placed his hand upon his head to massage out the pain he could feel there as he sat up in the bed he was resting upon. A loud barking going off in Jin's ears, the demon panicked at the sound. His eyes widened at the black, Scottish terrier barking at him. Jin was aware of the pets of humans. Dogs that barked usually alerted humans, namely, knights. Forgetting that he was even human, Jin tried to get out of the bed to 'slither' off into the nearest hiding spot only to trip over the covers he was wrapped up within to land face first on the floorboards beneath him.

Hearing the redhead hit the floor, a middle-aged woman with white hair spun around from where she was cooking dinner. "Oh my goodness!" Wiping her hands off on her apron, she let the soup sit for the moment, as she hurried over towards Jin. "Are you alright? I promise, he won't hurt you."

Hearing the human female beside him, Jin felt his heart pounding against his chest. He looked up and down the chubby woman with long, white hair. She was obviously an older woman given the few wrinkles he could make out on her face. Realizing that the woman wasn't running and screaming in terror at him, he tried to find the human words he had collected in his years. "I-where am I? What is going on?"

The woman blinked a bit, confused at his accent she could hear in Jin's tone. It sounded like he was trying to put a lot of tension on almost every other word he said. "You speak with a funny accent, my friend. Where exactly do you come from?"

Jin was unaware he spoke with such an accent seeing as Lily never cared to point out. However, with 12 years of no humans to speak to, he did mostly speak in demonic. The realization that he took that potion Suzuka gave him to become human finally dawned on Jin. Raising his right leg slowly upwards to see the covers fall away from it to reveal his toes, he moved each one with a bright smile. Realizing he was asked a question, he bit his lower lip wondering what he should come up with, as he was none too familiar with the areas about Eytheria. "I-um-I don't really remember to be honest…" He added a nervous laugh at the end of his statement, hoping that the woman wouldn't know what he was.

"Oh my," the woman said worryingly. "You poor thing." She ran her pudgy fingers through Jin's wild, red hair to feel of his forehead. "You must be suffering through amnesia." She looked up and down Jin with a worried frown on her face. "Do you remember anything? My son was the one who found you passed out with no clothes in the road coming to this village when he was coming home for the night."

Jin knew it wouldn't be wise to speak about the fact he was a snake demon to the human female. "Umm, well, my name is Jin. That I remember."

"Jin? That is a very foreign sounding name," the woman said. "It sounds like it would be something from the east of the world."

"I know I came from the east sometime ago! I came with my older brother and best friend," Jin said enthusiastically. "I was really young when we moved in this area."

"Well, my name is Daisy Ellsworth," the woman introduced herself, placing her hand upon her chest. "So what happened to your brother and your friend?" She stood to her feet, folding her hands in front of her apron she had about her commonly colored dressed. When Jin looked somberly at the ground, Daisy withdrew the question. "I am sorry. Do you remember anything about what happened to you before you passed out?"

"I don't really remember anything," Jin continued to say, not wishing to try and pull together a story he knew he wouldn't remember later. Moving his feet a bit more, he grabbed onto the side of the bed to force himself up on his two feet he now had. His legs began to tremble, as he wasn't used to putting force on two appendages. Trying to stay upright, Jin was unable to do so and quickly fell back down on his backside. _This is going to take some getting used to_, he thought to himself, cringing from the pain his rumpus took from hitting the carpeted floorboards.

"You poor thing!" Daisy exclaimed, running to help him to his feet slowly. "You are unable to walk too? Whatever happened must have really taken its toll on you." She helped Jin sit back down on the bedside with the covers over his lap. "The doctor was brought here when you first arrived three days ago. He said nothing appears to be broke or anything of that nature. He said your legs are oddly not strong enough for you to really use in some areas, so it may take some practice to get you to build up the strength to use them."

"Three moons ago!" Jin exclaimed in wonder. "I didn't expect to be out that long!" He watched as the woman headed back to cooking, as the pot began to hint it would boil over at any minute if she weren't careful. "What all has gone on since I was out?"

Finding his wording odd, Daisy said nothing about it, as she already knew he was foreign. She grabbed a nearby cloth to pull the top of the pot off to check on the soup before removing it from the fire to begin stirring it. "Well, my son, Norris found you, as I said. He came home with you on his horse. He had a hard time bringing you in as you are quite the heavy thing compared to that thin son of mine." She chuckled a bit at how Norris nearly fell over just trying to get Jin in the house. "But he brought you in and gave you one of his nightshirts to wear to bed. He was watching over you day in and day out when he was able." Grabbing a clay bowl, she spooned some of the soup into it before handing over towards Jin. "I think he was really worried. You were responsive to some food given to you in your sleep that he and I fed you from time to time."

Jin looked from side to side to examine the first room. He could see the front door, just beyond the dinning room table, from where he was resting on the bed. To the left was a small section for the kitchen that had a clay oven and a small wooden table with a few pots and pans on it. He noticed there was one bed in the main room and that was the one he was on. "So this bed I am in belongs to who?"

"That bed is mine," Daisy chuckled, joining Jin on the bed. "The bedroom through that door over there belongs to Norris when he comes home from time to time or for travelers." There was another door in the room to the right of the building that Daisy was referring to. "We would have put you in there, but you were way too heavy for a woman and a young man to move." Blowing on the hot soup, she guided the spoon over to Jin. "Here. You really should eat."

Drinking down the soup, he wiped the small bit that tried to slip from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand. "Thank you. That is really good."

"I assume you know how to feed yourself, right?' Here, she handed the bowl over to Jin to let him do it himself.

"Yeah, I do remember that," he assured her, accepting the spoon and bowl. He recalled how to feed himself with the human utensil when he fed Neda that one time. It had been awhile, but he was sure he could remember how to do it. Wrapping his fingers about the end of the spoon, he scooped up the soup and got it into his mouth.

The front door opening, the young man who found Jin entered the house with a package under his arm. "Hey, mom." His eyes caught onto the redhead he had escorted to the house a few days ago looking wide-awake. "Oh, I see that he is finally awake." Norris put his package on the dinning room table before making his way over towards Jin. His hands upon his knees, he leaned forwards to get a good look at him. "It is good to see you awake finally!"

Swallowing the bite he was working on, Jin put the bowl off to the side on the nightstand he saw near the bed. "Thanks for finding me," he managed to get out. "My name is Jin, and your name is N-Norr-is?" He tried to find the right words that he heard Daisy say. He always found certain names hard to pronounce.

Noting the accent in Jin's voice as well as his difficulty to speak, he tried not to make it obvious that he found it bizarre. "Yeah, my name is Norris. I guess my mom told you that? It is nice to meet you, Jin." He extended his hand to accept Jin's for a handshake.

Jin was confused. He looked from the hand up to Norris not sure what he was supposed to do. Slowly he slipped his hand into Norris' to have the human's fingers wrap about his hand to shake it up and down. "It is nice to meet you as well."

Turning back to the table where he left his package, Norris picked it up to hand over to his mother. "I managed to find that meat you asked for in the Eytheria Market Square. It wasn't easy, but I found it." He sounded pretty triumphant in his accomplishment. "And before I forget—." Norris dug around in his pant's pocket to pull out something Jin almost recognized instantly. "I found this outside of the house one night after some mysterious knock on the door. It has your name on it."

Accepting the book back into his possession, Jin opened his dairy to the first page to see all of his writings were still there from the time he moved from the east. When he continued to turn the pages, a single metallic, blue scale slipped from one of the pages to land into his lap. Picking up the scale, he examined it before smiling to himself. "Touya," he whispered to himself. Even though the two of them probably wouldn't be able to talk for awhile, the small gesture couldn't help but warm his heart.


	27. Chapter 27

_**Author's Notes**_: There was a death in the family, so sorry for the progress of anything. It took some time to get things in order and make sure everyone was okay. I've also been trying to wrap this story up as fast as possible. I am on my 'wrap-it-up mode'.

I now have an editor to look over my works when he isn't busy. I have crowned the position to my boyfriend, haha. So I hope he catches up and catches all my mistakes as my mind goes faster than my fingers way too often!

* * *

With the sun rising the next morning, Norris woke up at the sound of the rooster crowing. Making it out of his bedroom, he saw Jin was still sleeping peacefully on the bed he was granted. Norris still remembered the weakness in Jin's legs. Carefully he made his way over towards the slumbering redhead to wake him. His hand reaching out to touch the demon's shoulder, he was met halfway with the former wind master waking up and grabbing Norris' wrist. "Great Goddess!" He exclaimed quietly between them, jerking his hand back. "You must have the senses of a cat!"

"Sorry," Jin apologized, bringing his hand to his forehead. "I am so used to sleeping on alert from time to time." Realizing that sounded a little funny, he widened his eyes a bit hoping Norris wouldn't ask why.

Norris just found the comment rather funny, but he didn't bother probing into it. "I know the doctor said your legs aren't as strong as they should be." Here he extended his hand to Jin again. "I am sure I can help you with it. You kind of need to learn to walk at some point."

Jin smiled slightly though with a hint of embarrassment in his expression from where he was resting under the covers with his messy hair. "If you don't find me too heavy to carry." Moving the covers from his body, he placed his feet on the floorboards to slowly rise up with Norris' help.

"I am sorry, but you are a lot heavier than you look!" Norris explained with a light chuckle, helping Jin towards the dinning room table. "First thing is first though, you're going to need some clothes to walk around in." He tapped his finger to his lips as if to think. "I am afraid none of my stuff will fit you, and I am not sure where my mom put my dad's old clothes either…" His voice trailed off a bit and he seemed to frown sorrowfully at the mere mention of the man. Quickly, however, he perked right back up and waved at the redhead. "I might have an idea where though. Wait here."

The former demon found the young man's reactions similar to his own when Silver died. He knew what was possibly going through his head, but he dared not say anything about it at that point in time. Jin watched as Norris disappeared into another room, leaving him to take in his surroundings.

Eventually Norris found the clothes and escorted Jin outside to start his walking lessons. "Just hold onto me for a bit," Norris begged, letting Jin keep his arm behind his neck. "Just don't lean on me too hard or you might make me fall over!"

"Sorry," Jin laughed a bit, trying his best to keep himself stabilized on his own two feet. "I just haven't used these things in some time." Holding onto Norris, he took one step forward letting his feet touch the grass in front of him before moving the other one.

"How can someone as old as you not be able to use your own two feet?" He wondered aloud only to have Jin slip and nearly fall on him, causing them both to land on the ground. Having the big redhead on him once more, Norris threw his head back and laughed a bit. "I can't keep you up, and your feet can't keep you up either!"

Jin rested his head against Norris' nearest shoulder, shaking his head with a smirk. "It sure is going to take some getting used to. And I am not that old." His baby-blue eyes looked up at the young man with an honest smile. "I am only…" The wind master paused for a moment, realizing that his actual age wasn't normal for a 'human'. "Well, umm, I am only 35 years old," he lied through his teeth.

"Older then me," Norris pointed out playfully as he tried to get to his feet to help Jin once more. "Come on! We're going to get you walking before you know it."

While it took a few hours, Norris was able to help Jin to use his feet and get the use of it down. Holding onto the former demon's hands, he would step away from him at times and have Jin walk towards him. When Norris felt that he had walking down, he took Jin to the shops around town to help him find some clothes he could wear, as Jin had none.

Figuring that a regular, stitched V-neck, white shirt would do just fine with baggy, brown pants and boots, Jin followed Norris to another section of the town to see what the humans had to offer. After their walking around, he followed the vibrant, young man carefully to an open field within the village walls. Jin watched as the he plopped down on his backside with an apple in his hand. Norris tossed one at Jin, smiling when the redhead caught it.

"You haven't eaten since you got up. It might be wise if you eat that," Norris suggested with his mouth full of the apple already.

Jin joined Norris with a slight look of distaste at the apple he was handed. "I am sorry. I am a big meat eater, to be honest with you."

"Oh, come on," the young man said, nudging Jin with his elbow gently. "You mean to tell me you only eat meat? There has to be something else you eat. You ate my mother's soup for goodness sake." When Jin didn't answer right away, Norris paused as well to think of another question. "And your accent is from where, by the way? I notice you accent a lot of your 'E's especially."

Having that question given to him, Jin was still difficult about giving the answer right off the top of his head. "Umm, I am from the eastern area of this world, mainly."

Norris was wondering what the foreign redhead meant. "Do you mean from Asia? I think you're from Asia." Finishing his apple, he tossed what was left of it off to the side. "Your name sounds like it would come from there. But I don't think Asians talk like you do."

"I speak a bit differently from them," Jin answered honestly. "But I do know that when I was younger, I ate many rice and fish. It was what was around at that time in my life."

Smiling, the young boy leaned back on his palms, gazing up at the sky. His wild, black tipped and blond hair blew about in the tranquil breeze. "How old were you?"

Jin shrugged, not really having an answer for that one. "I was young," he stressed, resting his forearms on his inner thighs he had crisscrossed in front of him. "I lived there from when I was born till probably…17 years of age?" It was the only guess he could throw out, given how old he really was before he left the east with his friend and brother. When the conversation grew quiet, Jin looked at Norris out of the corner of his eye before gazing back in front of himself. "So, I noticed when you mentioned your father you got sad. What happened to him?"

Norris' eyes widened momentarily before he smiled almost contently. "You notice a lot." He sighed softly, gazing back up at the clouds, which passed slowly over them. "He died when I was ten. When a great war broke out over killing demons on sight, he was sent to fight them." Feeling tears about to well up within his eyes, he closed them quickly. "It was nearing my tenth birthday when I got the news. I never really find my birthdays cheerful anymore without him there."

Seeing that he was obviously in pain through it all, Jin moved in closer to the human's side nervously. "I am sorry," he whispered, placing his hand upon Norris' cheek. "That is something we both share." Sighing through his nostrils, Jin's heart squeezed him with pain over the thought of Silver. "I was with someone I loved and was asked to protect when it all started. She was pregnant with my babies when she was hurt in the chest with an arrow." Jin swallowed hard with having to recall that night. "She suffered before having to die by my own hands."

Hearing how upset he was, Norris turned to the redhead to rest his head upon his chest. "You loved her," he whispered, burying his face within the white shirt Jin was wearing.

Jin held the young boy close to him, resting his chin upon his hair. "I did love her. She was the best thing I had in a very long time." Closing his eyes tightly as well, he buried his nose and lips within Norris' wild hair.

The two men, under Daisy's directions, set the table. Both were quiet, but they couldn't help but eye one another from time to time. Norris seemed to be nervously eyeing Jin though saying nothing. The way he was often sparing glances at the redhead made Jin nervous deep down. He was hoping he hadn't given off any indication that he was previously a snake demon.

"Alright, boys," called Daisy from in front of the clay oven, "dinner is ready, I do believe." Grabbing a few plates, she put the chicken legs, bread, and carrots all together neatly before heading over to the table to place them down at their respectful spots before going back to grab a few bowls of the soup. With everything in order, she sat down at her chair on the northern side of the handmade table. "Now, let's thank the Goddess."

Jin was confused what that meant. He nervously brought in his hands to hide underneath the table. When he looked over at Norris, he watched as the young boy bowed his head and folded his hands. _Must be their God, I guess_, Jin thought to himself. Doing what Norris and Daisy were doing, he listened to the quietness around them before both said 'grace'. Hearing them finally speak, he looked up to see them finally eating.

"So from the east," Daisy began, as she began to pull some of the meat from the chicken leg, "what all did you eat there?"

"We ate something called rice balls," Jin answered, grabbing onto the chicken as well, as he found it more appealing. "We also had sushi. I ate a lot of fish and rice food when I was there. I guess living here made me get a bit bigger." He bit into the chicken leg, pulling some of the meat from the bone. Jin had never had chicken cooked before. He was used to eating it raw. Tasting it with flavor other than blood made it more appealing. "This is really good!"

"You must have forgotten the taste of chicken then," Norris pointed out with a chuckle. "I guess amnesia can choose what it wants you to forget at times. I have never seen it do that before."

Jin grinned nervously before finishing the chicken quickly, placing the bone back on his plate. Taking his fork, he poked at the chopped up carrots curiously. "I remember seeing these in farms, but I have never eaten them."

"You mean carrots?" Norris raised his brow slightly, finding that awkward as a majority of villagers always ate them. "They are good for you. You should eat them." Moving from across the table to where Jin was sitting, he took one on the fork and moved it towards Jin's mouth. "Eat it," Norris encouraged. "I promise that you'll like it. They taste better when flavor is added to them and steamed in the cooking pot."

Opening his mouth, Jin accepted the chopped up carrots into his mouth. He found them to be interesting in taste, but he enjoyed it all the same. "It is really good," Jin admitted, working on the others himself. "I guess stuff grown from the ground can prove to be good." When he continued eating he realized that Norris was looking at him from the corner of his eye. Gazing over at the young man, Jin looked around nervously. "Is something on my face?"

"No, no," Norris insisted, moving some of his wild hair out of his face. "It is nothing." Moving back over to his seat, he went back to eating his meal for the night rather nervously.

Jin witnessed his behavior and found it to be quite odd. When he was finished with his plate, the redhead excused himself from the table. "I liked the food, Daisy," he said with a smile when he tucked his chair in. Jin picked up the plate to show to the woman. "Did you need me to do something with this?"

Daisy nodded over towards the sink. "Put it there, Jin. I will bother washing it off later when I am finished."

With the dish in the sink, Jin made his way towards the door of the house. "I think I am going to look at this town a bit more before I go to sleep for the night. I'll return soon." Stepping outside, Jin closed the door behind him with his back resting against it with a sigh of relief. The awkward stare with Norris earlier unnerved him slightly, and Jin felt he needed to escape the house for a bit to watch other humans in action.

There weren't many villagers out and about at that hour of the night. He witnessed as most of them were making their rounds back to their houses or simply spending a few more moments in the company of another. Wandering to the south of the town, he found English words in iron fancily put on the brick wall nearby. His fingers touched the words to try and make sense of them, but he couldn't read some English words. It was a new word for him, and he couldn't think of how to possibly pronounce it.

Looking through the slight mist gathering further up the dirt road, Jin made his way carefully through the fog to follow his curiosity to whatever the place was. A majority of the trees appeared barren of leaves. Jin found the shadows that they caste in the moonlight rather uncomfortable. The further on he went, he found the thick fog beginning to slowly light up a little to reveal many stone markers made by man. "I guess this is their graveyard," he said to himself, walking over to the nearest grave marker. His knees resting in the damp grass, he moved his hand over the wording of the stone marker to make sense of it. He could only make out a few words on the stone. While Jin was reading it, he paused when he felt as though someone were watching him in the graveyard he was within.

Catching something out of the corner of his eye, Jin turned his head quickly to see a shovel high above his head. Inhaling sharply, the redhead forgot how to get to his feet and fell backwards, just shy of the shovel landing in the dirt in front of his feet. "What? What do you want!" He exclaimed nervously as Jin was too frightened to move from where he was sitting.

The old man pulled the shovel back towards him with a toothless grin. "Sorry, stranger. I didn't recognize you for a moment. I thought you might have been one of those demons that usually sneak in here at night to rest." He released a rather strained laugh, as he limped past the shocked Jin, dragging his shovel behind him. "I always watch these tombstones," the old man said, as he made his way up the small hill to the other row of gravestones. "And for a few nights now, I keep catching demons in the back of the graveyard."

Jin got to his feet, dusting off the grass from his backside to follow behind the old human. "It is probably because it is so quiet here," he explained, walking a respectable distance behind the man. "Not to mention it is a bit wet out right now. It isn't like they would intentionally attack anyone unless irritated first."

Stopping in his tracks, he looked up at the dark sky before turning around slowly to look Jin square into the eye with a raise of his gray, bushy eyebrows. "You protect them so easily." He pointed his shovel at the redhead defensively. "Not a lover of them, are ya?"

Forgetting for a moment that he was human, Jin raised his hands up in a surrender position. "No, no, not at all. It is just something that I read about."

"Reading, bah!" He spat, continuing on his rounds about the graveyard. "Reading is for people who can't think for themselves. I never read a lick of a word since I was born. Damn grateful for that too."

"Rather cheerful man," Jin mumbled to himself. "So what exactly do you do out here all by yourself?" He couldn't help but glance at some of the stones to spy some words he recognized. "Being so old, I wouldn't think someone such as yourself would be bold enough to stay out here if demons are around."

"You young ones are so obnoxious," he grumbled, looking over his shoulder at Jin through his white, thin hair. "Just because I am old doesn't mean I cannot defend myself." Taking his shovel, he moved it quickly and smashed a nearby snake that the old man caught lurking nearby. The snake making a shrill hiss upon being quickly injured made Jin cringe, though the man didn't notice. "I am the grave keeper, you idiot. I work the night shifts mostly out here to watch over a bunch of dead corpses."

Jin wasn't sure of what 'idiot' meant, but he knew in the man's voice it must have been an insult. "I am sure the spirits are all thankful to you then," he put out there rather coldly in return. Shaking his head at the man, he turned to leave before being startled again by someone behind him. "Oh, dammit!" He hissed lowly, covering his forehead when he witnessed Norris behind him. "I am sorry, Norris. I didn't hear you behind me."

"And here I thought you had reflexes of a cat," he smirked, his hands on his hips. Norris took in the place around them with a somber sigh. "Can we go elsewhere to talk? I really don't like the thought of being here."

Jin could understand why given that this was a place where humans put the dead. He smiled tenderly with a slight bow to Norris. "Sure." When the young man offered his hand to him again, Jin thought it was another attempt to shake hands, but Jin found when he slid his hand into his that Norris held it quite fast and tight. Admittedly, it spooked him a bit. Jin jerked his hand back with a nervous laugh. "Sorry, I just find that to be a bit uncomfortable. Makes me feel like I am going to be dragged somewhere."

"It's okay," he chuckled briefly, as they made their way down the slight hill in the road back out of the graveyard. "I just wanted to talk to you about something, is all." As they made their way to the main portion of the town, the marker showing Norris' father could be seen over amongst the numbers of markers in the distance before the fog gathered at the base to cover the name and date up again. It was a primary reason why the young man wanted to escape the dreary sight with knowing that his father's grave would be coming up soon enough. Pushing open the iron gate that he had closed on his way to Jin, Norris allowed the redhead through first before closing it once more. "I just wanted to talk to you about something personal to me, and you seem like someone who wouldn't mind listening and won't spread it around."

"Something wrong, Norris?" Jin asked, hoping he was alright.

"I guess many things depending on how you look at it." He crossed his arms over his chest, looking down at the grass beneath his feet. "Ever since my dad died, I had a hard time with it in some ways." Norris began to nervously rub his neck thinking about it. "I changed in ways after it, and given what is considered normal in this world, I didn't have the heart to ever tell my mother."

Jin smiled to himself. "I've gone through some changes as well in the past few moons; especially within the last few or so." He eyed Norris from behind, knowing that the boy had difficulty eyeing him with whatever it was he was about to indulge. "And being normal isn't all it is cracked up to be. What is normal from where I am from may not be so here."

"Well I don't know where this would ever be considered normal." Norris admitted. Biting his lower lip, he turned around with his hands up in the air for a brief moment before slapping them down at his sides. "I find a better attraction to guys than girls, and I don't know why."

"Sadly, that is something that isn't normal almost everywhere." Jin hated to admit that, but even demons frowned upon it and saw it as unnatural in most cases. "Even the damned are viewed as not normal if caught doing such a thing." Feeling Norris' fingers on his face, Jin widened his eyes to look down at his pale lavender.

Norris slowly moved his hands down to Jin's shoulders. "And I don't mean for you to take this the wrong way, but I think you really are handsome." Managing a smile to him, he pulled his hands away from Jin in hopes he wasn't making him uncomfortable. "Sorry, I just had to say that to you."

Jin closed his eyes and smiled. "Your words are too kind, Norris." He grabbed onto Norris' hands, holding them together within his own. "Back a few years ago, where I am from, we were always allowed more than one person to be with." Jin knew using the word 'mate' would be too weird. "And I had quite a few that I was quite attached to. I never had any males in my group, but I was close to some."

"You had more than one lover?" Norris was a bit surprised, as he walked through the darkness of the town with Jin beside him. "That is usually frowned upon here. You take one person to love and are with them till the end of time."

"Well, we were always told to love all of the ones we cared for equally." Jin looked up at the starry sky with a soft sigh at having to remember all of the women he had from his old nest. "I loved them all. I even took some in that were starved or lost their husbands to…the world." He knew he couldn't mention the word 'men'.

Norris nervously massaged his hands and fingers. "When I was fifteen, I used to meet this one guy in the village after dark. He was older than me by three years, but I still found his company enjoyable." He couldn't help but smile a bit remembering the time. "He was a sweet and charming guy. He would always leave me gifts whenever I was upset."

Jin listened as Norris paused. "What happened to him?"

"He had a better job opportunity in another part of the world." Norris found an empty spot on the ground to sit near a willow tree within the town. "He asked me to come with him, but I told him I couldn't leave my mother." Resting his arms on his knees, he fidgeted with a blade of grass he had plucked from the ground earlier. "I gave up the one man I truly loved for my mother. I haven't been lucky to find another one since."

"For twelve years I never bothered searching for anyone else after my lover died," Jin admitted, as he leaned against the tree's trunk. "I just felt too much of an emptiness to even bother trying to do so. Besides, I traveled around with my best friend who always kept me company and fed me if I were ever too sick to do so myself. He is a great person."

Norris looked up at the towering redhead, watching as the leaves of the tree swayed about them in the calm wind. "Do you think you'll ever find someone else?" He watched as Jin slowly joined him on the ground. Being able to look into his blue eyes calmed Norris a bit and yet, excited him at the same time too. "Do you think I will find someone else?"

Jin bit his lower lip, shrugging his brows at Norris. "I am sure when I feel the time is right, I will start looking again. I am sure when you feel the same, you'll start looking again too." Here, he reached his arm over to rub Norris' shoulder from behind his neck. Jin moved his hands to place them on the young man's cheeks before moving in to kiss his forehead. Gazing back into his eyes, Jin smiled briefly. "We'll both find someone."

* * *

Daisy stopped stirring the stew she was working on to clean her hands upon her apron. "Now, you boys be careful at the market." When she noticed Norris not paying attention to her, she snapped her fingers. "Boy, pay attention when I am talking to you!" She scolded, handing him the sheet of paper she wrote on last night. "Now, I want you to get all of these things, and here is some money for you to get it all with. Don't spend it on anything else, or I will find a way to make it hurt should you do so."

"Yes, ma'am," Norris said with a nervous bow to his mother. Whenever he was to go to the Eytheria Market, she always got very testy about him handling money. "I promise we'll be careful." Taking everything he needed, he nodded towards the door when looking at Jin. Escaping from the house with the redhead, Norris widened his eyes and released the stressed sigh that he had. "She sure has her moments."

"So how are we going to get there?" Jin wondered, as he was never sure of human transportation. "I used to walk to the market place, but it almost took me an entire day just to do so."

"Hmm, maybe that is what happened to you. If you walk on foot, you're going to be caught by bandits. They steal everything from you." Norris turned around, beginning to walk backwards as he spoke to Jin. "But we have better means of getting there. We have a carriage at the local stable. This way!" He waved over his shoulder and ran to the western area of the town where the stable was located.

Jin followed quickly behind the human to see all of the barn animals he usually ate in the past. Having to witness them right there without any humans nearby wanting to pitchfork him to death, he felt his stomach growling a bit. _Old habits die hard_, he grumbled to himself, knowing he had to regain control.

"Come here," Norris called from further down the stable. At one of the opened stalls, he was petting a beautiful brown and white horse while holding onto the leather reins. "This is Angel. She has been my baby for some time now." Unlatching the rope that kept the horse from breaking out of the stall, he guided her out slowly. "She'll be the one to pull the carriage into town for us."

"I've been on one of those," Jin said, remembering when he road on one with Lily many years ago. "It is a very nice way of travel."

"Convenient too," Norris chuckled, as he made it out to the family cart they also kept near the stables, as their house had no place to stash it without it being stolen. He began to work on harnessing Angel up to the carriage carefully while Jin watched.

"Con-vent? What was that word?" Jin inquired curiously, as he had never heard it used before.

"You know, convenient—it means handy basically." Norris could still see Jin was confused. Clearing his throat, he tugged a bit on the harness he was putting on the horse to make sure it was in place. "Anyways, I am ready when you are." Stepping up the wooden steps to place himself in the driver's seat, he grabbed the leather reins. "Afraid there is only room up here for one, but you can step in the back.

Jin did as Norris suggested, stepping up the back steps to get inside the back of the cart. Moving the fabric up front, he smiled up at Norris. "I am ready now. Let's get to the market. I cannot wait to see it all." Seeing the funny expression the young man gave him, Jin hid his embarrassment. "The times I used to go there, it was usually quiet. It was always late at night whenever I went."

"Well, you'll get to see it early in the morning this time! Best time for us to go." Snapping the reins, he got Angel to trot off towards the Eytheria Market Square.

The ride to the market town was just as rocky as Jin last recalled. It did beat walking, if anything. The drawbridge soon coming into view, Jin couldn't help but get nervous knowing that the place was going to be swarming with knights. Seeing the two knights already there at the bridge, he hid slightly in the cart only to feel it suddenly stop.

"Don't worry. We don't have anything important on board," said Norris up front. "It is just my friend and I. Hey, Jin!" He called, hoping to bring the redhead up front so the knights could see his words were truthful.

Hearing his name, Jin moved up to the curtains to let the guards see it was just him. He couldn't help but feel a bit nervous seeing the men in armor. _Just pretend you're one of them, Jin_, he thought to himself after taking a deep breath. Jin waved down at the guards to show that there was nothing in the back of the cart but himself.

"Let them through," one of the knights said with a nod to the other. The end of their weapon striking the ground, they allowed the two to travel on within the market square.

When they were out of view of the knights, Norris looked curiously over his shoulder at Jin. "You act rather nervous around knights. Is there any particular reason why?"

Sweating nervously a bit, Jin laughed faintly while rubbing the back of his head. "No, no, there is no big reason for it at all. The men just happen to make me nervous a bit. I just don't like higher figures in terms of the law is all." His attention diverted to the path ahead of him, he watched as the buildings on either side of the road led up to the center of the market area where all of the major trading was going on. Seeing all of the humans, Jin's eyes widened excitedly. "Wow, so many people here. I never knew."

The market was so much more lively and full of people and things. It excited Jin to see so many interesting items while it was all the same to Norris. Pulling himself out of the cart, Jin hopped down beside it even when Norris was still steering it. "Whoa," he called out to Angel, pulling back on the reins. "Jin, what are you doing? We still have things we need to get for my mother."

"Your mother can wait just a little bit, I am sure! Besides, her only rule was we had to buy the things on her list and get them back to her," Jin insisted with a wave of his hand. "She didn't say anything about a time limit!" Wandering away from the cart, Jin continued to look around at the lampposts and the many children, men, and women of all kinds who were out and about. The sound of so many people talking made it feel like he wasn't alone anymore after he was torn from his clan. "Wow," he spoke softly in amazement. Seeing the large castle resting in the distance of the walls, Jin's mouth nearly dropped further when he pointed at the building. "What is up there? What is that?"

"It is the castle, silly," explained Norris, as he dismounted from the cart to get to the stone ground. "That is the ruler of our land who lives there."

Jin widened his eyes in shock. "You actually have a God here on earth?"

"No, he just rules over Eytheria, not the entire world!" Norris went on to say with a light chuckle at Jin's enthusiasm. "For hundreds and thousands of miles, he controls and rules over just about everything you see. His word is law." He paused when looking over at the marvelous sight of the white and golden build castle. "His name is King Alexander and he rules with only his daughter, Princess Demelza, by his side. He used to have a wife, but I heard due to a fierce war that happened thirty years ago, when it came to the struggle over his rule on Eytheria, he lost her."

"What do the king and princess look like?" Jin asked, resting against a nearby lamppost. "What does the inside of the castle look like?"

"Jin, relax." Norris placed his hand on the former wind master's shoulder to guide him to the nearby booths, so they could find what they needed. "Hardly anybody sees the king or princess. You will be lucky if you ever get to catch a glimpse of them." Norris stopped just outside of a booth selling assorted breads. "But, there is an annual festival that the king holds every year during winter just for the sake of getting the townspeople, or those who can afford to go, to come and spend time in the ballroom of the castle. I went once, long ago, when my dad was still alive. I was only five, but I do remember some of the beauty of the castle." Trapped in the remembrance of the glittering dancing hall and the beautiful paintings that hung in the ballroom, Norris eventually snapped out of it and continued his shopping for his mom. "But I don't remember what the king looked like, because that was long ago. However, you might be lucky to go this year if everything works out. He always changes the date of when he holds it. Don't know what day or time it will land on this year."

Jin couldn't help but look back over his shoulder at the dazzling castle. "It sure would be interesting to go if he sends invitations out then."

Norris handed the sheet over to Jin to let him read the English writing on it. "I need you to get a few things on this list. Just get the wool, fish, and the potatoes. I've got everything else."

Examining the words on the paper, Jin admitted that he could only read some of it. "Alright, sure, I will see if I can find some of that around here." Walking away from the booth Norris was at, he made his way to the other nearby ones to check to see what they had for sale. "Fish…I think I remember fish being in this direction." Just as he took a step to the left, he ran chest first into someone, causing him to nearly be knocked off his feet from the force of it. "Ouch, my God!" He swore to himself, rubbing his chest where he got smacked. "Sorry, I didn't mean to—." Jin paused upon seeing the young female on the ground with her basket beside her. "Neda!"

Neda shook her long, fawn colored hair from side to side when trying to bring herself back to reality. Hearing her name being said made her come back a lot quicker. "I am sorry? Do we know one another?" Getting to her feet, she brushed her long, blue dress off with her palms before picking up her empty basket.

"Uh—no, I mean, well, yes. It was long ago though." Jin took in a deep breath with his hand extended to Neda, as he was getting used to shaking hands. "I am Jin, and I was the guy who was asked by your mother to watch over you."

"You're the 'J' in our old letters?" Neda asked in a bit of shock. Her shock went to almost anger, as she backed away from him. "What happened to you then? You only showed up that one time, and it was in letter form!" She looked at him rather sadly through a few pieces of hair that almost reached down to her eyes. "Where were you when I needed you?"

"That is why I sent Lily to you," Jin insisted, placing his hand upon his chest. "A lot of things happened during the past few years. I am sorry I couldn't come by as often. Also, I am sorry about your parents." Even if he was saying that in general, he really meant for it to be a way for him to apologize about the fire. He always felt that Neda and Blythe deserved that.

"Thank you…" Sighing sorrowfully, Neda shook her head at Jin. "You could have been around more!" Her grip around her basket tightening, she nudged her way harshly past Jin to storm away from the redhead, furious that he was gone for so long.

Norris overheard the conversation, causing him to sneak up behind Jin slowly. "Is that someone you know?"

"It is a very long story, Norris," Jin expressed, waving the thought away, as he continued onwards through the market square to get what they were there for.


	28. Chapter 28

"So you took care of them for awhile?" Norris asked, as the two of them headed back towards Neldron Village. He kept Angel steady on the road while listening to Jin's story. "I think I remember hearing about the Cormac Farm fire. I don't know who they are, but I know of the goods that they sell."

Jin couldn't help but feel bad about everything the more he thought about it. Realizing that he was tired of moping about it all, he gathered up his courage in the matter. "Norris, I need you to take me to the Cormac Farm before you head back to the village."

"What? That is way off course from Neldron." Norris did pull back on the reins to stop Angel from going any further.

"I am sorry, Norris, but this is very important to me," Jin apologized, grabbing onto the human's shoulder gently. "I was on my way to her when I got…attacked on the road." He knew he had to come up with some lie. "Please, just take me there. You can pick me up the next day. I know the other woman there. I've known her for awhile."

Norris sighed, lowering his head. "This is really important to you, isn't it?" He asked, gazing over his shoulder at the redhead. When he witnessed Jin nod, Norris tugged on the reins of the horse to pull Angel in the direction of the Cormac Farm. "Just be careful. I don't need anything to happen to you again."

Within the day, Neda was able to gather what supplies she needed before heading back to the farm on Rose. Dismounting off of her horse, she escorted the mare to the barn, so Neda could remove the saddle and reins. She was still very frustrated over the event at the market square. Neda made it very obvious when she stormed to the farmhouse.

Lily could hear the thumping of the floorboards, making her wake up from where she was resting on the sofa. Opening up her clouded eyes, Lily moved upright on the cushions. "Neda? Are you alright? You sound like you're rather angry."

Placing the bread items where they were to go as well as the fish and everything else, she sighed angrily with a shake of her head. "I met someone in the market today—someone I thought I would never see in a million years."

"Who, Neda?" Lily asked curiously, as she brought her feet to the floor before searching for her nearby cane.

"Blythe and I used to get letters from someone with a 'J', and I met him at the market today. He said he was a friend of yours too. He called himself Jin," explained Neda. Hearing Lily inhale sharply, the young farm woman turned around to see the blind woman looking quite pale. "Lily? Is something the matter?"

"That-that can't be…Jin was…he was in that war Thane was in," Lily explained. "I thought he was killed." She covered her mouth to prevent her lips from trembling. "How did he look? Did he look okay? You didn't hurt him, did you?"

"No," Neda said, looking at Lily oddly. "He was five feet or so taller than me. Why would I want to pick a fight with that guy?" She closed the cabinets in the kitchen once everything was put into place.

_That can't be_, Lily thought upon kneeling down to find her cane on the ground. _He was a snake demon last I recall. He couldn't have possibly changed that much in the past few years._

Neda was quiet for a bit before heading over to Lily to help her to the kitchen. "You know if you need help with dinner tonight, I can easily help you." She often would help Lily whenever the woman had difficulty remembering where some of the food items were located. Hearing a knock at the door, Neda diverted her attention to the front door with a confused look. "I wasn't expecting anyone tonight. Were you, Lily?"

"No, I wasn't," Lily answered. "Can you answer the door? I will get ready with dinner."

Hurrying over to the door, Neda opened it with a curious expression before seeing who was there to prompt an annoying frown. "You again? What are you doing here?" She wasn't too thrilled to see Jin standing there on the other side of the door.

Jin could tell he wasn't welcome in her eyes, but he was desperate to try and set things right. "Neda, I want to talk to you about a few things."

Recognizing the voice immediately, Lily dropped the wooden spoon in her hands. The item tapping upon the floor, she nearly stumbled over the chairs in her way to make it to the door. "Jin…? Jin, is that you…!" She said breathlessly while hurrying towards the front door.

Hearing his name, Jin looked inside of the house to find Lily making her way towards him. With her knowing whom he was made Jin smile brightly, as he entered inside of the house with Neda's permission. "Lily, I am glad to know that you remember me." Opening his arms, he hugged the woman close to his chest.

"I am just so relieved that you are okay," whispered Lily, as she held the clothed man close to her. "Tonight, you must catch me up on what happened many years ago." She was eager to understand what was going on with Jin. Lily could tell he was walking on two feet and not slithering around as he once did. "Come, come, I am just working on dinner."

Neda sighed angrily, turning on her heels to grab her paper and quill pen before storming for the door. "If anybody needs me, I will be outside." With that said, she slammed the door to let her exit of the house be known.

Lily listened to Neda leave before shifting her attention to Jin. "Forgive Neda. She is just still sore about you and Touya not being around as often." She placed her old, slender hands on Jin's face to feel of it once more. "You're still the same as I can remember you. But what happened? How did you become human?"

Jin chuckled lightly against his hand. "I had some help from a wizard I know of. He gave me a potion to take to make me human for one year." Thinking back on Neda, he frowned to himself while gazing over his shoulder at the door. "The main reason I became human was so I could make up for the times I wasn't here and to apologize for what I did wrong."

"So your transformation isn't permanent?" Lily inquired, pulling from Jin's embrace to make her way back to the kitchen, so she could start dinner.

"No." Jin followed behind Lily to the kitchen, watching her grab a few fishes from the storage area. "Do you need help with anything?"

"No, thank you, Jin." Lily paused when she got the kitchen knife off of the knife rack. "I was here when Thane came back smelling of blood. It really worried me when it came to your safety, Jin. I was afraid that Thane or someone had killed you successfully those years ago."

Having to be reminded of that night once more, Jin frowned somberly with a wave of his shoulders. "I wasn't killed, but I was hurt in a way that I may never be fully healed from. Silver was killed by those damn knights." His arms across his white, V-neck shirt, he closed his eyes. "Kurama got the babies out of her before she died, but I was banished from both the clans I was in, so now Touya and I walk alone."

"Touya is around here too as a human?" Lily asked, turning her head slightly towards Jin though her eyes looked right through him.

"Touya walks alone for the time being." Jin covered his face with his palm, shaking his head. "I hate that he is out there by himself. The fool didn't want to come with me." His hand slowly sliding from his face, he gazed up at the ceiling. "I didn't mean to leave him behind as I did." Hearing the knife slide from Lily's hand, Jin jumped slightly at the sound of it smash to the ground. "L-Lily…?"

Lily covered her foggy eyes while her bottom lip trembled. Tears began to slide down the side of her face regardless of how well she tried to hide her sadness. She felt Jin's hands touch her soon enough, but she just couldn't handle him seeing her that way, causing her to turn away from him. "Why did you just disappear like that?" Lily asked through her shaky voice. "I was worried about you for many years, Jin. I was worried I would never hear your voice again…!"

Jin placed his hands on Lily's shoulders, allowing her to keep her back to him. "I am here now," he whispered apologetically.

"Where were you before!" Lily exclaimed almost angrily. "Where were you when I needed you!" Here, she turned around to let Jin witness that she was obviously angry and upset. "I needed you when I was younger! I needed you a lot then!" She knew given how quiet Jin was being that he was aware of what she was trying to tell him without outright saying it. Sighing at having to finally get that out, Lily leaned against his chest. "After awhile, I was spoiled by your kind words to me," she said softer this time. "You were so nice to me…you made me feel loved."

Jin shifted his eyes about wondering what to say to what Lily told him. "I guess I was never around enough for anyone. I am sorry," said the former demon tenderly. "Once Silver died, I just had little thought about anyone else. And I have babies out there that I will never get to see." Jin held her close to him once more. "But you still are beautiful to me."

"You still flatter me as always," said Lily with a light blush across her pallid cheeks. "And I am sorry for the losses that you suffered." Wiping the tears from her eyes with Jin's help, she prompted a brief smile before turning back to the fish she was going to be preparing for dinner. "If you could bend down and find that knife for me, that would be nice. I would do it myself, but I am not as young as I used to be."

"Of course." Jin knelt down to the floor to grab up the knife to hand it carefully over to Lily. He guided her hand over to the wooden end of it. Jin then took the wooden spoon next she dropped earlier to place it back on the rack. Watching closely as she cut the fish, Jin tapped his fingers a bit nervously upon the kitchen table Lily was preparing the food on. "You know I tried my best to get you to see that I didn't mind having you. I hope you understand that."

Lily stopped cutting momentarily and smiled. "I know, and it was flattering all the same. But like I said back then, I couldn't be with a snake demon."

"Suzuka could make you a potion, maybe," enticed Jin. "He could make you a snake demon to be with me. He can do anything!" He was excited to even mention the man's name.

"You don't like being human so far?" Lily inquired curiously once she was done cutting the fish on the cutting board. She moved the fish over towards the fire to work on cooking it to perfection.

"Neh," Jin huffed. "My skin is so gross. Not to mention being powerless and having to walk is hard on me. I also don't understand fully the human language let alone the writing of it."

"My dear, you are funny." Lily moved her hands about to find the carrots, broccoli, potatoes, and onions she would need to make the soup she had in mind. She began to cut them up quickly yet carefully given she couldn't see. "While your suggestion is kind, I am afraid I must decline the thought." Finishing the carrots and moving onto the potatoes, Lily turned her face towards Jin. "Besides, at dinner you have someone you need to talk to."

Jin nodded, "I can try my best. I am afraid I cannot stay here, because I am currently homed up in that Neldron Village with Norris' family." Thinking about Neda, he couldn't help but look out the nearby window to see if she were still out there to find her in the rocking chair, drawing.

"Jin, you just arrived after so long," Lily protested, as she finished the potatoes to push everything into the cooking pot. "Can't you just stay here and rest at least? I am sure Neda won't mind. She usually doesn't."

"Even though she doesn't like me?" Jin wondered with a slight smirk. When Lily didn't respond, he rolled his head back to think. "Well, I was hoping that you'd let me stay the night. I just didn't want to force you. As far as staying here, we'll have to see. I don't want to upset Neda anymore than I have to."

"Just talk to her after dinner. It will give you both private time to do so." When she felt the fish were ready, Lily pulled them from the fire to work on the soup next.

Jin couldn't find it within himself to speak at the dinner table and Neda didn't spare a word to the redhead. It was an awkward position for the former wind master, but he allowed the farm woman to finish eating before removing herself from the table. Hearing Neda's door shut from upstairs, Jin flinched slightly at the force behind it before turning to Lily with a tilt of his head. "I am just not sure I will be able to do this."

"You've had children before, right?" Lily asked, as she grabbed a napkin to wipe her mouth with. "I would assume you did since you told me you had a large nesting site back east." With her meal finished, she removed herself from the table to clean up her area and Neda's.

"While there isn't much differences in your human kind and mine at times, you forget that it was many, _**many**_ years ago when I had that nest." Pulling from the table as well, Jin grabbed up the plate he was done with to place it near Lily. "I suppose I can talk to her about it and hope she understands."

"If not, at least try to be here for her." Lily grabbed the next plate to start running water over it to make sure every last bit of food was off of the surface. "If your purpose of becoming human was to do such a thing, you have an entire year to work on letting her see the world through your eyes."

Jin knew this was true as he gazed up the wooden staircase Neda had escaped to earlier. "Thanks for dinner, Lily," said Jin, as he placed his hand upon the woman's shoulder before moving to the stairs. He slowly ascended the staircase to make it to the upstairs where Neda was holed up in her room. Taking in a deep breath, he rapped his knuckles upon the wooden door. "Neda, it is me, Jin, can I come in?"

"Come in," Neda's voice beckoned from the other side rather irritably.

Opening the door, Jin stepped inside with a soft smile to the young woman. "Hope I am not interrupting anything." Jin stumbled a bit over the 'interrupting' word, as he slowly stepped inside.

"No, I am just reading," Neda grumbled crossly. Moving her legs to an Indian style position, she continued to eye the written words in front of her. "What is it that you want?"

Jin shut the door behind him, not wishing for anything he was about to say to be heard by anyone but Neda. "I am sorry for not being here as often as I should," he apologized, as the redhead cautiously made it further into the bedroom. Sitting down on the side of the bed, he fidgeted a bit. "But, you have to understand, I had people who didn't want me here that were really mad with me. Also, the woman I loved died, and for the past several seasons, I just couldn't bring myself to be around anyone until I felt fully healed."

Hearing that he too lost someone, Neda slowly lowered the book, which she had nearly covering her face to hide her expression. "I am sorry to hear that. It is never easy to lose someone you love." She folded the book in her lap to pay closer attention to the redhead. "I still blame the snake demons for killing my parents."

Seeing as Jin never fully understood her side of the story, he shrugged at her comment even if he wanted to tell her it wasn't true. "What happened that night when Pearl died?"

"It was a long time ago, but from what I remember, the demons started the fire in the barn. The fire trapped my dad inside, and he died from the falling debris. And my mother was dragged out by one of those creatures, and he killed her when he sunk his teeth into her." Neda brought her knees up to her chest. "For years, I've wanted them to get what they deserved. Even after that battle Thane went to in attempts to rescue me, I still feel like they didn't get what they deserved."

Jin felt hurt by that comment, but he didn't say a word to reveal who he was. "Are you sure you remember everything clearly that happened that night?" He witnessed Neda roll her eyes at his comment. "It could have not happened that way."

"You sound just like Lily," Neda huffed irritably. "When my parents died, she claims the grave markers out front were made by snake demons. She tells me to think more on that night." She moved the covers a bit over her knees to try and get a bit warmer in the cool room. "Why is it everyone acts like I am missing something? I was there!" Moving some of her hair out of her face, she looked at Jin curiously. "So what happened to your wife?"

"Silver died from an arrow running through her heart," Jin said simply, not wishing to explain it all further. "She died in my arms, and I have been just traveling around with Touya ever since."

"Sorry," Neda apologized once more for his loss. "I guess I can understand why you wouldn't want to come around here after something like that."

Jin could hint a bit of sarcasm in her voice. "Neda, I wish there was something I could do to make up for the pain I caused." Excusing himself from the bedside, he headed for the bedroom door. "I guess I should help Lily a little bit before she goes to sleep."

"What do you plan on doing now that you have shown yourself?" Neda asked from the bed. "Do you plan on leaving again or actually staying this time to help like you promised?"

The redhead didn't bother to turn around when Neda said that to him. "Are you saying you still need me?"

"If you laugh at what I am about to tell you or give me any logic, I promise I will hurt you," Neda teasingly threatened. "While everyone else had a father to have fun with, I never did after mine died. When you and your friend left that note saying you'd watch over us, I was hoping I would someday see you both. I was thinking, I would have a family again."

"What about that knight that was here and Lily? I would have considered that a rather nice family." It was hard for Jin to say such a thing about Thane, as he couldn't help but really despise the man for what he had done to Silver.

"Ugh, Thane…," Neda growled, as she looked over at the window. "I couldn't stand that guy. He was only after my sister, Blythe. He did some nice things, I guess, but he always knew how to irritate me."

Jin couldn't help but chuckle to himself in agreement. "I plan on being around for a year. What you want to do with me after that year is up to you." With that said, he shut the door behind him before making it down the stairs to check on Lily.

Hearing the person behind her, Lily turned her head slightly. "What did Neda have to say, Jin?" She had just finished cleaning up the table when she heard the floorboards behind her moaning.

"Still hard to believe you can see without your eyes," mentioned Jin, as he made it to the end of the stairs. "She sounds like she doesn't mind to have me around, but I am worried. I can only be here for a year as a human." He made his way over to the wooden chair in the small living room space the house had. "Once she finds out the truth, what am I going to do?"

Lily put away the rag she was using to clean up the dinning room table before grabbing her cane to make it over towards the redhead. "Sometimes a years time is more than enough time to make people understand the nature of others." Her palm gently met with Jin's cheek, as she felt for his hair. "While you are a serpent demon at birth, in a human disguise, you can easily get others to see that the demons don't mean harm. If not everyone, the ones that matter."

Smiling against Lily's hand, he gently grabbed her wrist to hold her hand into his. "I suppose you're right. If I could just convince Neda that I didn't mean any harm, maybe my shoulders will be lighter."

Grabbing the candle she usually kept on the table, Lily handed it over to Jin. "I am afraid the one thing I cannot do is light a candle. If you light this, you can see your way through the coming darkness up to an open room on the right upstairs. Tomorrow, maybe you should go on Neda's runs throughout the villages. She sells throughout most the days, and I would feel better if you were there with her."

"I can see just fine in the dark," Jin insisted, taking the candle to put it back down here Lily had it. "Thank you for your thoughts. But I would think you should use the bed and not me. Seeing as I am here, you have no reason to sleep on the sofa to wait for me." When Lily was about to refuse, Jin took her gently by the arm to help her towards the stairs. "I won't take your human 'no' for an answer."

Once on the stairs, Lily knew it was useless to argue. "If you insist, Jin. Sleep well tonight." Finding his cheek once more with her hand, she kissed him there before departing upstairs. "It is good to have you back, Jin," Lily whispered between them, as she disappeared into the darkness and soon the bedroom.

When the door closed upstairs, Jin made his way back over to the sofa Lily usually used. Moving the pillows about a bit, he grabbed the quilt down off of the side of the piece of furniture before draping it over himself.

* * *

Watching Jin snore loudly the next morning, Neda twisted her mouth to the side irritably before grabbing a pillow to toss at the redhead. "Wake up, you lazy bum!" Neda demanded around sunrise.

Getting his face full of the pillow, Jin flailed a bit and nearly fell off of the sofa. "What! What is going on!" He exclaimed at having to be woken up so early. Seeing that the sun was just rising, Jin fell back down exhaustedly on the sofa. "Neda, dear, it is so damn early. What is the idea here?"

"Lily told me this morning you wanted to come on my runs, and besides, if you're going to be hanging around here for a year or so, you should at least understand how a farm works." Extending her hand, she got Jin to his feet. "Trust me, I was once not a morning person either, but when you work on a farm, you get used to it. Now, go outside and there is a small outdoor place where you can shower."

Jin looked about the house with a confused look. "If it is all the same to you, I don't mind if I bathe elsewhere." When Neda looked at him oddly, he chuckled nervously while making his way to the front door in his pants he had on. "I just never use such things. I prefer to bathe in the lake." Jin headed out of the house with his bare feet and chest exposed.

"You're not going to put any shoes on?" Neda called over her shoulder, witnessing his boots there near the sofa.

"I'll be fine," Jin said back, as he made it outside with a deep breath of relief. "So eager she is." Yawning with a big stretch, Jin made his way out towards the woods.

Once Neda had everything ready on her end, she headed to the barn to start working on cleaning out the stalls and feeding the animals. Wiping the sweat from her brow, she gazed out at the position of the sun to find that Jin had been away for some time. "Where is he?" Neda wondered quietly to herself. She didn't want to openly admit she was feeling worried for him given the snake demons that were usually spotted around the area. Hearing someone coming from just outside of the stable, Neda turned her attention to the entrance to see Jin finally make his appearance. "Where have you been!" She exclaimed angrily, her fist on her hip.

"I was just getting washed up," Jin chuckled nervously, raising his hands in defense. "So what is it you wanted me to do?" One of the horses nearby couldn't help but move its large, brown and white striped face towards Jin to sniff of the redhead. "Whoa, hey there, horse."

Neda spotted the horse nosing Jin while she was shoveling some of the dirty hay. "That's Duke. He is one of the horses my dad bred long ago."

Jin smiled, placing his hands underneath the horse's big cheeks. "He sure is a big one." Seeing the big, innocent eyes staring back at him, Jin couldn't help but think the animal he used to eat was cute.

"If you want to help, you can take some of the hay and give it to each horse. It will make the chores go by quicker with two people working on it." She couldn't help but take a small break to lean against the pitchfork in her possession. "Once we're done here, I have some things to sell within the towns and market square."

"Alright then." Jin turned around to spy the hay that Neda mentioned earlier. Grabbing it by the rope that was keeping it together, he tossed it to the first stall to give it to the white horse in front of him. He watched as the horse was startled by his actions, making Jin confused as to what he did wrong.

"Whoa, settle down, Mist!" Neda encouraged upon dropping her pitchfork to run over towards the startled horse. Grabbing onto the rope halter about the horse's face, she managed to get the steed to settle down. "Don't throw it at them! That will scare the horse." Bending down to grab up the next one, she motioned him to the next stall. "Do it like this." Neda simply moved the hay under the rope put in front of the horse to keep it from leaving its stall. "That's all you have to do. It doesn't involve tossing it at them. Horses spook easily. Just be careful."

"This sure is going to take some getting used to. I have never worked on a farm before," Jin said, as he grabbed the next bushel of hay. "Maybe I will get this down soon."

When all of the farm chores were finished, Jin and Neda both hopped onto the carriage to head about the routine Neda usually did when selling for the sake of money to keep the family farm going. "You don't really have to do much in these cases. All you have to do is stand there and give people whatever it is they want and take their money in exchange for it."

"Sounds easy enough," called Jin from the back of the carriage where most of the goods were rattling about in their containers. "But I was wondering, whatever happened to your sister? I haven't seen her since I have been at the house."

"She got married years ago to Thane," said Neda as she moved the reins to guide the horse to the market square in Eytheria. "They live behind the stone walls in Eytheria Castle Town."

Jin could only narrow his eyes at the mention of Thane's name. His fists tightened with anger though he released it upon hearing Neda call his name eventually with her tone sounding worried. "Sorry," he apologized. "If you ever go see Thane, I am afraid I must be elsewhere. I don't trust myself around him."

"Did he do something wrong?" Neda inquired. She peered over her shoulder to see the rather angry look on Jin's face. It made her blood run cold at the mere sight of it. "Alright, when we get there, I'll try my best to make sure we avoid him. Usually he patrols around Eytheria. He used to patrol around another village at nightfall, but he doesn't since his promotion years ago since that war against the serpent demons."

Growling angrily, Jin's fists slammed down on the woodwork of the cart, startling Neda and the horse.

"Jin! What is wrong with you!" Neda exclaimed, once she got the horse under control.

Jin didn't answer right away. He merely watched as they were nearing the drawbridge. "When we get inside, I will do the selling. If you have to see your sister and her lover, that is fine with me. Just don't let that man near me, please." Jin watched the knights allow them through to the Eytheria Market Square. He still couldn't help but feel a burning distaste for the fact that the knight was within the same walls as he was. It made him want to go hunt for the man and kill him for what crime Thane did against him.

Neda could tell that Jin was obviously very upset for whatever reason. When she stopped the cart at her place in the market square, she dismounted from the carriage before opening up the back to help Jin down. "Why don't you just help me get set up and sell for a little bit? Afterwards you can head to the local bar not too far from here to relax. It seems like whatever is on your mind dealing with Thane is a big one, and I don't want you to kill my sister's husband."

Jin didn't shake the angered look on his face upon Neda's words. He didn't care what she had to say. His desire for revenge was heavy in his heart. Sighing out his anger, he shook his head. "If there is anything you need me to do, just let me know."

Shaking her head, she grabbed onto Jin's cheeks to make him focus. "What I need you to do now is to relax." Afterwards, she tapped his right cheek a few times hoping to snap him out of his angry trance. "I am going to unload the cart for the time being."

Neda did unload the cart and gave Jin pointers in how to sell the items she had to give to others for money as the time passed. When enough were sold, she noticed the positioning of the sun, which was making her worried that Thane would be along anytime soon to check that area of the market square. "Jin," she called over to the redhead who was looking through their list of items. "It is almost time for my sister's husband to come by here. Why don't you take some money and head to the Iris Bar just down the back alleyway there?"

Jin sighed out his frustrations, as he wanted to be there to see the man who killed his lover. "Alright. I'll be back later to check on you." Taking the money, Jin made his way down to the bar that Neda had mentioned. Finding the swinging sign of Iris Bar, he opened the door to allow himself inside to find only a few customers sitting around talking to one another. He saw a few knights in there getting drunk and rowdy, making Jin a bit nervous, as he made his way to the main bar. He sat down at the first available seat with the coins in his pocket.

"What will it be, sir?" The bartender asked, as he handed a piece of paper over to Jin with a list of things that they sold.

As he was never too sure with the human foods or drinks, Jin picked a random drink on the list. "I'll take that one."

"You sound none too sure about things," said the barkeep, as he wiped off his hands on a towel he kept behind the counter. "Also, you have a very interesting accent. Where do you come from?"

"I come from the east," said Jin, as he ran his fingers through his wild hair. "And I am still learning about how this world here works." He was quiet before gazing at the name of the alcohol he chose. "I'd just like that fruit wine. I am sure I need it."

"Right away, sir. I will make sure it is strong. It looks like you need it." He took the sheet of paper to put back behind the counter before working on the drink. The glasses clinking about as he made the wine, he poured the drink to hand over to the redhead. "Here you are. Enjoy, sir."

"Thank you." Jin grabbed the drink, which looked red in color, to bring to his lips to drink quickly. To find the taste quite strong and sweet, it nearly made him choke, as Jin was used to drinking a lot of water when he was in the wild. "God, that is strong stuff," he coughed, trying to catch his breath.

"I guess you're not used to it. Don't worry, around here, you'll get used to it in no time," the bartender promised, as he worked on cleaning a few more glasses.

With the main entryway opening, Jin opened his eyes slightly to look over to see another knight standing there. Having so many in one area made him nervous. He brought his hands under the table to his lap and kept his eyes focused at his glass. However, the knight managed to make it to the bar area where he was and sat just a seat away from him. Keeping his focus in front of him, Jin listened to him order a beverage of some kind as well. Looking over at the knight, he noticed the blond hair and beard on him given his appearance.

Knowing someone was looking at him, the knight gazed over at Jin with a brief smile. "Hey," Thane greeted.

"Hello," said Jin back without breaking his focus from the drink in front of him after he took another sip. With Thane being that much older and different in appearance, Jin didn't recognize the knight right away. All he knew was he was a knight, and it made him frightened, even in his human body.

Thane noticed the slight shaking Jin was going through and chuckled lightly. "Got the jitters over something? You're acting rather nervous." He pointed at the drink Jin was drinking. "If you drink enough of those, you'll feel better. It relaxes you a bit."

"I am afraid that the money I have is not mine to spend a lot on," Jin insisted, thinking of Neda and what she gave him. "But I thank you for thinking of me all the same."

Tilting his head, Thane also noted the accent, but he didn't say anything about it. He felt just by looking at Jin he knew who he was. "Have we-have we met before? You look familiar to me."

Jin thought the question was odd, as he turned to look over at Thane with his blue eyes. "I am afraid I don't know who you are."

Seeing the blue eyes caused Thane to be taken back to his reoccurring nightmare he used to have. He would always see those same blues in his dream looking at him in sorrow. Nearly losing his breath, he was brought back to reality by the sound of the glass of beer hitting the countertop. "Th-Thanks." Cupping his forehead, he quickly drank a bit of the alcohol to calm himself and take his own advice.

"I guess I should be the one to ask if you are okay," Jin said with a light smile. "I didn't say anything that upset you, did I?"

"No," whispered Thane after taking a deep breath. "No, not at all." His teeth rolled over his lower lip before turning around in his chair. "It is just-your eyes look so familiar to me. I feel like I've seen them before."

"Once again, sir, I don't know who you are," Jin expressed, pulling some of his wild hair behind his ear.

"Sorry, sir. Well, my name is Thane Wilson." Here he extended his hand to accept Jin's in return only to see the redhead stare at him oddly. "Is something wrong?" Thane asked, seeing Jin shake his head almost in shock.


	29. Chapter 29

Jin's chair fell over as he backed up away from the bar. "You don't remember who I am…do you?" He was both offended and angry by the mere fact Thane wouldn't remember the very demon that he hurt those many years ago.

"I told you that you looked familiar, but I don't remember who you are if I should. For that, I am sorry." Thane removed himself as well from the bar. He could tell that the redhead was looking rather furious, and it was all, possibly, towards him.

With so many people looking at him, Jin knew that it wasn't the time or place to do anything. Snorting out his frustration angrily, he left the bar with a mighty slam of the door. Walking up the cold, stone stairs, Jin found his way to the market square where Neda was. Grabbing her tightly by the wrist, he pulled her from the booth. "Did you tell him to come down there?" He asked angrily through his teeth.

Neda was confused and her heart nearly stopped at seeing Jin so angry. "I-what are you talking about!" She exclaimed in worry for herself.

"Did you tell Thane to come down to the bar you sent me to!" Jin asked again almost louder this time. When he realized the fear in Neda's expression, he released her wrist and backed away from her. "Sorry, I just happened to see him at the bar, and when I found out who he was I about…" He couldn't bring himself to even tell Neda what he was about to do. "Let's just pack up and go home. I am done here."

Watching Jin head off to the drawbridge by himself, Neda's eyes glistened with tears waiting to fall from the fear that overran her. "Jin…what is wrong with you…?"

When night came over Eytheria, Jin remained outside in the rocking chair Lily used to sit within awaiting his return. Silver's death replaying in his mind over and over again haunted him endlessly after meeting face to face with Thane. All he could do was stare down at the floorboards, his fingers twitching almost uncontrollably over the desire to get back at the knight.

"He is still out there?" Lily asked with worry, knowing she had never seen Jin act with such hatred before.

"Yes," answered Neda, as she walked over towards the blind woman to place her hand upon the Lily's shoulder. "I don't know what got into him. I know Thane said he was going to be taking a break somewhere, but I didn't know it would be at the same bar I sent Jin to." Remembering the cold, angry look in Jin's eyes gave Neda chills. "I would talk to him, but I am too scared to speak with him right now."

"Neda, why don't you finish dinner for me tonight?" Lily asked, her eyes gazing right past the young girl. "I will go out and speak with him." Wiping her hands on her apron, she removed it from herself to hand over to Neda." Gripping the doorknob, she opened the front door to step outside where Jin was sitting in discontent. "Jin, you really scared Neda today with how furious you were over running into Thane."

Jin growled at the mere mention of the man's name. His fingers gripping tightly onto the end of the armrest of the rocking chair, he closed his eyes not wishing to look at Lily. "I am sorry," he said bitterly.

Her brow furrowing into concern, Lily placed her hand upon Jin's shoulder. "Jin, what is the matter with you? I have never heard you this furious before."

"I just want that bastard to pay for what he did to Silver." Jin took a deep breath and let it out slowly with a low, throaty growl to follow.

Lily frowned, disapproving of his actions. "You desire revenge, don't you?" When she didn't hear Jin answer, she herself began to get a bit frustrated with him. "Answer me, Jin!"

"Yes," responded Jin simply and coldly.

"Will you stop thinking of yourself for a moment and listen to what you're saying!" Lily demanded, as she pounded her fists gently on the empty space on the armrest she was given. "You want to kill Thane, someone who is married, and leave that woman without a husband as you were left without a mate! My father used to tell me this old saying of his: an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind." Moving her hands, she rested them on Jin's face to feel if he was even listening to her. "You want to kill someone all because of what they did to you."

"If he wanted me to suffer all these years, he should suffer too," Jin grumbled, not changing his furious expression.

Lily looked away as she was getting angry herself that Jin didn't understand what she was trying to tell him. "Listen to yourself! Your voice is full of hate and revenge! You're so bloodthirsty for him that you can't even think right!" She kept her hands positioned on Jin's face still. "Jin, what if what you remember isn't right! What if Silver wasn't killed by his arrow!"

"She wasn't killed by his arrow!" Jin yelled, grabbing Lily's wrists to remove her hands from where they were. "She was killed by another man's arrow, but Thane was there and ordered them to kill her! He might as well killed her himself!" Bringing his hands to his face, he sighed heavily at the pain he could feel inside of him once more. "She was the love of my life, and that damn monster killed her."

"Jin, listen to me," begged Lily, "you cannot expect Neda to forgive and forget the past dealing with the death of her loved ones, if you cannot do the same." She moved her hand to his fiery red hair to run her fingers carefully through it. "You have to be more forgiving when it comes to the actions of humans and demons alike."

"I hate when you're right," grumbled Jin quietly. "But it is still so hard to forgive him for what all happened. What do you suggest I do?" He turned to look at the blind woman.

Lily shrugged slightly. "Get to know him just like Neda is unknowingly doing to her supposed killer of her parents. You never know what is actually in people's hearts and minds until you get to know them better." Opening her other hand for the former demon to take, she smiled. "Now, I think we should get back inside and work on dinner."

Jin nodded, taking Lily's hand to pull himself out of the rocking chair. "I am sorry," he apologized finally. "Silver was just someone I wanted after being starved so long without having love. I thought for sure I had found someone to be with again after so long." Jin closed his eyes having to think about his passed loved one. "It was a horrible pain when I had to watch her die."

"Jin, I think everyone around here knows your pain." Lily could only be reminded of her cheating husband, which also hurt her heart. "By the way, that young man, Norris, dropped by earlier. I told him you would be staying here for the most part," explained Lily, as she found the doorknob to the front door. "He said that was fine, but he would miss you. He also left this for you." She pulled out a folded piece of paper from her dress pocket with her other free hand to give to him before opening the door. "It is a letter. If you need help reading it, I can help with that."

Taking the letter, Jin looked at the white parchment before smiling at the blind woman as they entered the building together. "Thank you, Lily." Seeing the still obvious pain in Neda's eyes given his attitude earlier, Jin bit his lower lip. "Sorry about what I did before, Neda. I didn't mean to do that."

Neda shook her head while wiping her hands on the apron she was wearing. "Jin, I know Thane tends to annoy people, but you need to watch yourself. He does come around here with my sister sometimes." She nervous reached over to rub his left arm in hopes it would calm him down further.

"I am sorry. It won't happen again. I promise." Jin made his way over to one of the open chairs at the table. "If you ever want to bring Thane over here, that is fine. I wouldn't mind getting to know him better." He tapped his hands a bit nervously on the top of the table when Neda and Lily both worked on setting the table.

"So what is it that Thane did to you?" Neda boldly asked, as she put the corn and bread down at their right places. With everything in place, she moved closer to the handmade table, curious to hear what Jin had to say. "I do know that you said you were involved in that war."

Jin looked away from Neda, wishing he didn't have to think of so many lies. "It is not something I like to talk about, Neda. The death of Silver was hard for me, and I plan on trying to forget about it in due time." He took the glass of milk to drink a bit of it in hopes of swallowing the nervous lump in his throat.

Neda withdrew the question, as she worked on cutting into the chicken meat. She felt there was a lot that Jin was telling her, and it was irritating for one that was curious.

When dinner was finished, Neda made it back to her bedroom to change into her pajamas. Jin was walking up the stairs to check on her while she was parading around in her bedroom. He could easily hear the boards creaking underneath her bare feet when she walked around, and he had to admit it was bothering him a bit. "Neda, are you there?" Jin asked, knocking on the door.

Neda sat on the edge of her bed with her long, flowing white gown resting at her ankles. "You can come in," she beckoned.

Jin opened the door to let himself inside of the large room Neda now lived in alone. "What are you doing up here? I can hear the ground making noise right underneath your feet from where I am down the stairs."

She always thought the way he said things was rather funny. Neda wasn't aware that Jin avoided a majority of human words he didn't know how to say properly. "Sorry," she apologized, as she watched him make his way over to where she was. "It sometimes takes me awhile to get to sleep. It just depends on what is running through my mind."

The former wind demon pointed to the pillow on the bed. "It would help if you rested your head on that first." Watching as she finally moved under the covers towards her pillow, he sat on the bedside. "Finally," he chuckled. "Now, get some sleep and don't move anymore. I can easily hear you."

"Sorry," Neda apologized with a smirk. "I didn't think your hearing was that good. I also didn't expect someone to be that light of a sleeper."

"Well, I wasn't sleeping," Jin said honestly. "I am just not used to sleeping around others like this, I guess." He was a bit hesitant to say anything regarding humans. "And without Touya here, I am a bit nervous for him." He didn't elaborate on it, as he pushed himself up from the bed with a slight grunt. "And I am sorry you don't remember me being here, Neda, but when you were younger and asleep, I would actually sneak in here with Lily's help to feed you when you weren't eating."

"I must have been fast asleep," Neda said, lying down on the mattress. "I don't remember anything like that when I was younger."

"You were fast asleep," Jin pointed out, as he headed for the door. "Just get some sleep. I know I need it if I am going to continue to keep up with you when the sun rises. Goodnight," he called from the door before shutting it behind him.

"Goodnight," Neda mostly said to her bedroom, as Jin was too quick to get downstairs. Lying down in her bed facing the wall where her window was, she couldn't help but still have a bunch of questions running through her head involving Jin's disappearance when she was younger. The majority of unanswered questions swarmed her head and kept her away for a few hours, before she finally fell asleep.

* * *

As summer eventually fell onto fall to hint the coming winter, Jin worked hard on the farm with Neda's help. It took many weeks, but he eventually got into the swing of how the farm was to operate. He would even get up sometimes before Neda just to work on feeding the horses and working on their stalls to clean it up before she got outside. Even though the two of them were trying their best to get chores done, Jin couldn't help but play around a bit with Neda by splashing her with water, even if it was quite cold. Having her chase him playfully was something he always found funny and enjoyable; especially since she never took it personally.

Lily would hear the two always laughing and joking around when they entered the house. She couldn't help but smile at the two having a fun time together. "Enjoying yourselves?" She asked one morning, continuing to stir the soup she was working on.

"I was, until Jin decided he found nearly dropping an entire bucket of water on me was funny!" Neda tried to act serious about the situation through her damp hair, but she couldn't help but find it a little funny even if she was cold. "Now no thanks to him, I am sure I'll get a sick some time soon."

"Don't whine," Jin joked, as he took off his heavy shirt to put on Neda's body. He had a smaller, thin undershirt, so he wasn't too worried about getting cold. "There. You should warm up in no time."

Neda looked up at Jin with a smirk full of gratitude. "You are the only person I know of who would throw cold water on someone during _**winter **_seasons."

"Sit down, you two," Lily insisted with a shake of her head. "Breakfast is about ready." When she heard the chairs move across the ground, she knew they were seating themselves when turning around with the hot bacon, eggs, and soup. Sitting the plates down in the center, she managed to find her own seat thanks to Jin helping her. "By the way, Thane said he was going to come up here with Blythe a little later in the day." She turned her head slightly in the direction she felt Jin was. "I hope that isn't a problem."

Jin had managed to hide himself and keep away from Thane for the most part. He still knew Lily's advice was the best thing he could do for himself if he ever expected the same out of Neda. "It is fine with me," said Jin, as he reached for an egg to eat. "I guess I can apologize for the way I acted last summer."

"It is a start," said Lily with a slight bow of her head. "Seeing as you've been good at being scarce, he doesn't know you actually live here."

"I was good at what?" Jin couldn't help but not recognize the word Lily just said to him.

"Scarce is a word for being invisible, Jin," explained Neda, as she cut up her food before eating it. When he gave her a funny look, she dropped her fists gently on the table. "What? I am allowed to know how to read without an education! Blythe teaches me from time to time."

"So that's why you know so many words. I know Lily reads too with that fancy thing her father created." Jin couldn't help but notice the lesser educated never really said many words he couldn't understand. A majority of Eytheria, he noticed, wasn't really into reading all that much.

"Braille, my dear," elaborated Lily with her mouth slightly full. "My father wanted me to have a way to not be completely shut off to the world, so he introduced me to it."

Once Jin was finished, he removed himself from the table and took his plate with him to wash off in the sink. He felt bad leaving chores for Lily to do, as she was much older than last he remembered. "If you don't mind, Lily, I am going to use your room to change my clothes. These still smell like the barn."

Lily could tell there was some sadness in his voice, but she didn't talk about it feeling it was personal if Jin hadn't said anything. "Sure, dear. Go ahead." When she heard Jin walk up the stairs and shut the door, she turned her head slightly towards Neda. "If he's not down soon, check on him for me, will you?"

Neda eventually finished herself and went to change as well. She was finishing with her jewelry when stepping outside to look at her parents' old bedroom. The door was shut, and she could see someone walking around on the other side from the bottom crack. Neda knocked on the door. "Jin, are you in there?" At first there was nothing before she heard his voice.

"Come in," he called from the opposite side. When the door opened, Jin looked up from where he was sitting on the end of the bed. He noticed the long blue dress with a few white designs at the bottom. Trailing his eyes up he saw that the top rested mostly on her upper arms. It was the fanciest thing he had ever seen on a human woman. "You look nice," he complimented. When he saw the red necklace around her neck, Jin recognized his scales immediately. "That's a nice necklace. Where did you get that?"

"I made it myself," said Neda, as she brought her hand up to touch the red, dried scales, which still shimmered. Flattening the underneath of her dress to sit down next to the redhead, she smiled. "I found these things around the farm, and I just bought the string to put them on."

"I know where that comes from," he said, pointing to the scales around her neck. "As a matter of fact, I know who they came from." Jin watched as Neda looked at him with interest. "But I won't tell you." He was met with a playful punch to his shoulder, causing him to lightly laugh at her actions. "At least not now."

"You're such a jerk," she teased before realizing he hadn't changed his clothes from earlier. "I know something is on your mind." When Jin didn't say anything right away, she regretted having to continue. "It is about your wife, isn't it?"

"Don't ever talk to Thane about this but, I feel that night when the war broke out, he could have saved her," Jin explained vaguely, as he turned to look at Neda. "I really think he could have saved her from being killed." He lowered his head a bit, blowing his wild bangs out of his face with a heavy sigh. "Getting over the death of a loved one is never easy."

Neda moved her hands over Jin's shoulders to try and relax him with her fingertips digging gently into his shirt. "Hey, I know how you feel. It is hard." She rested her chin upon his closest shoulder. "It will get easier in due time. I promise you." Resting her head near his neck, she thought back on her own parents. "I still have a hard time thinking about snake demons, considering what they did to my parents."

"I understand," whispered Jin, as he turned to look into Neda's green eyes. "Maybe we'll both come to terms with what happened and forgive those around us." Kissing her on the forehead, he waved for her to get off of the bed. "I guess I better get ready. I was just inwardly getting myself ready."

Watching the Jin walk over to the closet where Lily let him keep some of his clothes he bought, she stepped to the door but didn't leave just then. "You know, you're living here for some time now, and I don't know anything about you. How about once Thane and Blythe are done visiting, we head to Eytheria Castle Town? You know, just to talk and stuff."

Jin turned his head slightly with a raise of his brow and a rather teasing smirk upon his features. "I believe that is what you call a…date, yes?" Seeing Neda coming towards him in attempts to punch him again, he moved away just in time to grab her wrists. "Alright, alright! I was just teasing, you silly girl."

"I know that, but every word that comes out of your mouth deserves to be followed by my fists," Neda returned jokingly. Clearing her throat, she stepped away from Jin to head back towards the door. Giving him one last look, she waved goodbye for the time being before stepping outside to head down the steps where Lily was reading. "He is getting ready now. He should be down here soon."

Lily raised her head with a smile. "You sound like you're relieved he's here now." She smiled at Neda pretending that wasn't true. "I am being serious. You were annoyed with him at first, and now, you spend every waking hour with him now."

Neda fidgeted a bit, as she sat in the chair not too far from the sofa Lily was on. "Lily, when you met Jin, what did you first think about him?"

"When I first met him, he was a very sweet and charming guy," said Lily. She could still hear Jin messing around above them, so she wasn't afraid to speak her mind at that moment. "He said all the right things to make me feel better about myself when my husband left me years ago. While he comes from an exotic place and has different views on marriage and love, I still think anybody he takes under his wing he'd love unconditionally."

"Did you ever do anything with him?" Neda asked straightforwardly. She shuffled her boots slightly against the boards beneath her.

Lily found the question rather audacious and only blushed at the thought of ever trying to do anything with Jin. "Quite curious you are today." Pausing in her book, she put it down on the coffee table she knew that was in front of her. "Back when I first met Jin, I would have given anything to be with him but there were a few…_**differences **_between us that couldn't allow it to be."

Neda found herself confused. "What differences?"

"Well, let's just say that a fish cannot marry a bird unless the Goddess gives it wings." Lily didn't feel like revealing Jin's secret anytime soon to Neda. She knew it would be too much for her. Hearing the door close upstairs, Lily turned her head slightly to where she could hear Jin coming to meet the two of them. "It is good of you to join us, Jin."

Jin was wearing a long-sleeved, cotton shirt that was white in color with green sleeve and rim embroidery. His green, baggy pants were tucked into his brown boots. "Well, how do I look, Neda?"

Neda smiled a rather sarcastic smile at Jin. "Well, you do look like a human being," she stated the obvious. The young girl wasn't about to say that Jin looked good. A part of her couldn't help but feel a bit embarrassed if she ever complimented on his appearance.

"Thank you," Jin commented back just as equally sarcastic. "If you could see me, I would ask what you honestly think, Lily." He made his way over to the sofa to sit down to join the blind woman.

Lily couldn't help but giggle at the two playfully fighting with one another once more. "I am sure you look handsome, Jin." Hearing the knock at the front door, Lily's cloudy eyes widened slightly at the sound before realizing who it was. "Well, looks like Thane and Blythe are here. Are you ready for this, Jin?"

"Better now than never." Jin pushed himself up to his feet with a nervous clear of his throat. He stood near the chair where Neda was sitting, still not trusting himself with being any closer to Thane.

The door opening, Blythe greeted Lily quickly with a hug while Thane stood behind her eyeing Jin instantly. He remembered the crazy redhead from the bar, and now he was feeling a bit nervous himself about entering the room until Lily gestured him on inside. "So, you must be the man that Neda was talking about for so long. I didn't realize," said Thane, causing a bit of silence between everyone for a moment.

Jin tried to be rid of his angry expression when looking at the knight. "Yes, I am sorry for that time we met. I was just tired after a long day and all."

Thane still found it hard to look Jin right into the eyes. Each time he attempted to look for very long, he was always reminded of the nightmare he would have about that night. "Don't worry about it," Thane insisted, with a wave of his hand before extended it to Jin. "We all have days like that."

Accepting it, Jin expressed a nervous smile. "My name is Jin, by the way. I don't think I got that out sooner before I got all upset."

Thane waited for a last name, but when he wasn't given one, he didn't pressure Jin into revealing it to him. "This is Blythe, my wife." He watched the two exchange a handshake. Seeing Lily give him some subtle hints, Thane rolled his eyes and thumbed over his shoulder to the dinning room table. "Care to have a drink?"

"As long as it isn't anything strong like what I had back at that bar that one time." Jin had to admit his stomach wasn't meant for strong drinks like beers or wines.

"Well, seeing as we're on a farm, I don't think we have to worry about that around here." Thane pulled out a jar of milk for them both to drink. "I am sure this will do just fine for now."

Sensing that the two men were going to want a moment alone, Lily looked over her shoulder where she knew the girls were. "Ladies, why don't we head upstairs to talk things over and catch up?" She waved her hand over her shoulder to move in the direction of the stairs with her cane helping her find the way.

Jin watched as Neda headed after Blythe and Lily out of the corner of his eye before realizing she was staring at him in return. He looked at her while Thane poured the milk for both of them to drink. Before she left up the stairs, he spared her a gentle smile to reassure her he wouldn't do anything brash while she was gone.

Thane caught his actions before Neda headed after her sister and Lily. "Oh, so how have things with Neda been? She seems to be coming out of her shell a bit more," he admitted, taking a sip of the cow milk. "I have to admit, I have never come into this house without her sparing a sarcastic remark at me."

Jin tapped his fingers upon the glass in front of him. "Everything has been alright. She didn't like me at all when I first came here, but Neda has gotten better." Thinking about how well she was doing, Jin couldn't help but smile to himself. It wasn't even that far within his transformation, and already Neda was feeling a bit better with him being there.

The knight caught the smile, and he couldn't help but smirk a bit. "Ah, so you have a thing for her then?" He witnessed as Jin nearly choked on his next intake of milk. "No need to be embarrassed. Besides, maybe with a man in her life, she won't act so crazy."

"You-you misunderstand," Jin coughed, trying to catch his breath. Having Silver come to mind, he didn't think of the bitterness he felt towards Thane, rather, the sadness he felt over her death. "As much as I would love to have someone like that in my life, my heart is hurt right now. A few years ago, I had someone I loved, and she died at the hands of others."

"That's terrible," Thane said sympathetically, as he bowed his head. "I am sorry for your loss. However, sometimes we need to give love to someone else in order to forget the pains of the past." He gazed into Jin's blue eyes quickly, seeing as the redhead wasn't looking at him directly. "And just because you begin to love someone else, I know your heart won't ever replace the lover you first knew."

Jin found truth in Thane's words, even though he didn't want to believe the knight could be truthful about anything. "I am sure when the time is right, I will act on it. Right now, I am in no rush." He looked up the stairs where he could hear the muffled voices of the women. "I am just trying to put things right as they should be."


	30. Chapter 30

_**Author's Notes**_: Fanfiction, you epically fail for not letting me break up the damn story as I want to. =_=; So, I give up in trying to insert breaks in the stories to show time as passed by a hefty amount. Haha If I ever insert a line break, it is to hint a new day. I don't know why Fanfiction takes out my dashes. POC D:

* * *

When Thane and Blythe both said their goodbyes to Lily and the others, Jin stepped back inside with a slight stretch given the time he spent talking to the knight. He was still unnerved by the man, but a part of him felt Thane didn't mean any harm. "I am glad to know Blythe is doing okay. When I arrived at this house, I thought for sure she had been killed or something."

Neda nudged Jin gently with her elbow. "Why would you think that? She was probably one of the two of us who could actually take care of herself."

"I was just really worried. Besides, I did promise Pearl that I would watch over you both and make sure you wouldn't die," Jin explained, rubbing the area Neda had nudged. Smiling down at the young woman, he nodded over at the door. "Didn't you say you wanted to head to the market place?"

"Come with me," she chuckled, waving for the former demon to follow her. "We'll return later, Lily." Heading out to the barn, Neda made it to the stall that had Black Rose waiting for her. Removing the rope for the mare, she helped the black horse out of the barn to meet Jin. "This is my first horse, Black Rose." She petted the mussel of the beast gently.

Jin raised his brows to show his shock at the size of the animal. "Well, she sure is pretty. I can see why you like her."

Neda pulled her to the side, so she could bridal and saddle the mare. "I begged and begged my parents when I was younger to let me have a horse of my own. Sadly, right before they died, this one was born. I got what I wanted but at the price of their lives." She hesitated in putting the saddle on the horse thinking about that night. "I feel like I was a spoiled brat to them before they died."

Figuring her arms might be getting tired from holding the leather saddle, Jin walked over to take it from her. "What happened that night has nothing to do with anything that you did. I promise you that." Jin placed the saddle on the blanket, which was put on the black mare's back. "I do believe we did promise to know one another better in Eytheria. We might as well get going before it is too late to travel back."

Smiling at how he wasn't going to let her dwell on the past, Neda nodded. "I guess we better start our journey there." Getting on the back of the horse first, she grabbed onto Jin's wrist to pull him up with her. "You better hang on tightly. This girl does know how to run."

It was indeed almost nightfall by the time the two arrived in Eytheria's Market Square. Dismounting off of the horse first, Jin reached up to catch Neda into his arms to help her down next. Neda gazed into Jin's baby-blue eyes for a bit with a nervous smile to follow, as she grabbed Rose's reins. "I guess I better head to the stable with her. I will be right back."

Jin followed her to the stable while she put up Rose only to get caught up in all of the sights that the market place had to give to the humans. "This place is so big. I can only imagine how anybody can find their way around."

Neda waved for the redhead to follow her down one of the many stone streets. "It isn't easy at first. It is a little overwhelming. But eventually, you're able to find your way around should you come here enough." Turning around, she grabbed Jin by the hands to pull him to the late night bar she usually went to from time to time. "You'll like it here. There is a woman here who is very kind and helpful."

Finally stopping at one of the signs, Jin gazed up to see just a design of, what looked like, grapes. He didn't know what the name of it was, as he didn't see any human words. Entering inside of the building, he found it to be a rather small in appearance with probably only three tables and a bar area that a woman was attending. She had long, brown hair and was a little big in size.

"Hello, Neda," said the woman at the bar. "And who is your guest? I haven't seen you with anybody besides Nash for so long."

"Nash?" Jin inquired with a raise of his brow. He knew he had never met that person before.

Neda chuckled nervously and waved away the name before insisting Jin to sit down next to her. "Well, I haven't seen Nash in awhile now. But this is Jin. He was asked by my parents long ago to watch over me. I haven't seen him at all, so I have been so lucky to finally meet and get to know him." Grabbing up the menu, she merely glanced over it before handing it back over to the owner. "I'll just take the usual."

"And what about you darling?" The woman asked, resting upon her elbow with a wink to Jin.

Jin couldn't help but hide slightly behind the menu at finding her moves and words a little flattering. "Oh, you have white rice here. I guess I'll take that and two salmon." He handed the menu over to the woman, glad that she gave them water for the moment. "I know when your parents died you had a hard time coming to terms with it. So what eventually turned you around?"

"After that night I was captured by the serpent demons, I realized how fearful of death I really was," Neda explained. She watched as the water in her glass swished about when she moved the glass in her hands. "I didn't want to die, and I knew if I ever did, I would be leaving behind people who cared a lot for me." Neda couldn't help but chuckle at her own hardheadedness. "Nash eventually helped me through it all with my sister and Lily's help as well. Over time I considered myself lucky." Here, she looked at Jin. "So what about yourself? You said you were from the east. What's it like there?"

His wild red hair shook when he gazed over at Neda. Jin looked up at her through his long, red hair, as he thought back on being in Asia. "It is quite beautiful. You have lively trees, very decorative clothing and festivals almost every season. The food isn't much to eat, but it is good for you."

Neda hesitated with her next question. "Not to be straightforward, but Lily said that you had a different ways of love than most people. Do you know what she meant by that?"

"Oh, that," said Jin rather apprehensively. "Well, from where I am from we believe in having more than one wife. When I was from the east, I used to have a lot of women I loved equally until I was forced to part with them no thanks to my elder brother."

"You had more than one wife?" Neda paused in her question upon seeing their food coming to their table. She thanked the bartender, taking the usual chicken dish she always had. "Here that is usually frowned upon."

"Lily explained that to me." Jin picked up the nearby fork to work away at his white rice. "While I understand how everything works here, I have to admit, I am not sure if I could ever bring myself to love just one person."

Neda found that rather disrespectful and quite a slap to the face. "That's a rather selfish thing to say!" She exclaimed quietly between them.

"You don't understand," Jin insisted, as he grabbed another fork full of white rice. "While the woman I had with me I mostly opened myself, I took some into my home that lost their husbands at the hands of others or illness. I took in those who felt they couldn't find love again. I couldn't handle the sight of others suffering from loss, so I tried to find them a better home with me."

"But what if just one wanted your attention?" Neda inquired, still sounding bitter about the thought.

"She would have my attention then, but I would give equal love to those I had in my possession." Jin finished his rice before moving to the salmon he was eyeing. "I understand that things are different here, but the women I find closest to my heart, I bring to my side. Silver was going to be my first wife, yes, but she wouldn't be my last."

Neda's hands slapped down on the wooden table beneath them. "How can you be that way! What if just one person wanted your focus! What if just one person wanted to know they could roll over in bed and know you're there next to them—not find five other women with you!"

The tone in her voice caught Jin off guard. He stopped paying attention to the food in front of him. "Neda…?" He questioned, wondering what was on her mind.

Realizing all she had just said, Neda brought her hands to her sides before running for the door. She didn't care if she heard Jin calling for her. All Neda knew was she had to escape and quickly. _I can't believe what a moron I was!_ She cursed to herself while running through the cobblestone roads. One of the rocks in the road was jetting upwards, causing Neda to trip over it, when her boot met with it, and fall on the ground. "Ouch!" She yelled, hissing through her clenched teeth. "Dammit, why do I get injured more than anyone in my family!" Getting to her feet best she could, Neda limped further down the road she was on, a bit relieved she couldn't hear Jin any longer.

Continuing to limp through the town, she saw the iron gates blocking anybody from entering the castle area, which rested upon the hill. Neda made her way to them just to gaze up at the majestic beauty of the palace she never got to see often. Sighing through her nostrils, she limped over to the nearest bench to sit down and take the pressure off of her right ankle she had injured. She felt of the injury herself to know that she didn't break anything and found it to be possibly swollen. Hearing Jin calling to her once more, Neda couldn't help but sigh. She knew she had to face the redhead sooner or later.

Jin jogged around the corner to finally see Neda sitting upon the bench near the castle's gates. "Neda, there you are!" He exclaimed breathlessly, as he sat down beside her. "What is wrong with you? I was worried you were going to run off and leave me here, or worse yet, get yourself in trouble." He could see her holding her right foot all weird making him eye her criticizingly. "You hurt yourself, didn't you?"

Neda looked away from him with an angry expression. "I didn't do it on purpose, you idiot." She turned around to look at the former demon through her messy, fawn colored hair. "I was running and I tripped. I think it is just swollen."

"I am not taking chances." Jin got up off of the bench and offered his hand to Neda. He witnessed her turn away from him with her arms across her chest. "Neda, please. I don't want something bad to happen to you."

"Just like you didn't want anything to after our parents died. You really stayed around then." Neda still couldn't understand why Jin was scarce all those years ago. "I understand that your wife died and that hurt you, but there were months or so that you could have been there."

"Neda, maybe in due time, I can explain that to you. But right now, I am afraid I can't." Jin extended his hand to her once more. "Come on. I don't want to think your ankle is in bad shape. It would take a worry off of my mind if you got it looked at."

Neda could tell he was being sincere, prompting her to cave in and take his hand. Hopping on one foot, she rested her arm over Jin's shoulder. "I don't know where you're going to find a doctor around this late."

Jin knew that was a truth within itself until he thought of another source outside of the Eytheria and human walls. "I can take you to someone, but you need to wear a blindfold if that is okay with you." He witnessed Neda give him a rather odd look. "Look, the guy who can look at you just…you can't see who he is. So let's get on Rose, and I will ride to his place."

"If I didn't trust you so much, I would slap you a few times," grumbled Neda, as she made her way back to the stables to get her horse.

The sound of hooves beating against the ground alerted Touya, as he was sleeping that night alone in the nesting site that he and Jin had made. His head flying upwards, he kept low to the ground with a low hiss before slipping backwards behind a boulder to hide behind. Hearing the dry leaves crunching up ahead, he could feel his heart racing. "Touya?" Jin's voice called, as the redhead made his appearance. "Touya, I know you're here."

"Jin?" Touya wondered, as he slithered out from where he was hiding. "What are you doing here? I didn't expect to see you for awhile." Hurrying over to his friend, he wrapped his arms around Jin's neck when his friend knelt down to his size.

Jin tried to put on his best begging expression, as he held Touya's hands within his own. "I have something to ask of you."

Touya lifted his brow, staring Jin down harshly. "What…?" He grumbled, feeling he wasn't going to like whatever it was his friend had to tell him.

Getting to his feet, Jin made his way back to where he was hiding Neda. Taking her hand, he helped her further into the nest she couldn't see with the white cloth wrapped around her eyes. "Neda injured herself, and I need your help."

"Jin!" Touya exclaimed between them. His cold hand touching Jin's upper arm, he pulled the former demon away from the farm woman. "Kėkam súyo! What is she doing here!"

"She injured her right ankle, and human doctors aren't around to look at it, so I was hoping you would?" Jin tugged on Touya's arm a few times hoping to bring him around.

"Alright, alright! Just stop tugging on me!" Touya demanded, slithering over towards Neda who he could tell was a little frightened at where she was. He could smell it on the wind. "Neda, it is I, Touya."

Hearing that name, Neda raised her head slightly at where she could hear the voice. "Touya? You mean the other friend of my parents?"

"I am surprised you remember that, but yes, that is me. Now, just hold still." Touya moved his hands down to her boot to remove it himself to see that her ankle was swollen from whatever injury it was she dealt herself. "It sure is enlarged, that is for sure. When I was with the last clan, I was taught by Kurama how to understand injuries easier as well as use my abilities to sooth it." Placing his hands gently on the ankle, he watched as Neda hitched in breath from it just being touched. "It's alright; just take a deep breath."

Neda could feel Touya touching her ankle, making her want to crawl away considering the pain. "Great Goddess above, that hurts!" She exclaimed, clutching her fists tightly.

"It isn't anything big," Touya insisted, as he felt every bit of Neda's ankle. "Not a broken bone or anything, but I would say wrapping it up is a good solution. Make sure she stays off of it as well. Now, to ease the pain a bit." Taking a deep breath, the ice master released it before focusing his cold touch within his palms. He placed his palms upon Neda's ankle gently to soothe the pain that was going through her.

"What-what are you doing?" Neda asked. She had to admit that she desired to look and see how he could possibly be creating so much cold in his palms. "Why is it so cold?"

Touya's sky-blue eyes shifted over at the blindfolded Neda. He didn't wish to explain what it was he was doing. "Is it not soothing?"

"Well, of course it is, but I am wondering how you are doing that." Neda almost felt compelled to lift the blindfold only to have Jin's hand slap hers away from the thought. "Ouch, you bastard!"

"I told you! You can't look!" Jin exclaimed, not wishing Neda to see what Touya truly was.

Neda huffed with her arms across her chest. "So what are you, a winter elf like Nash? I can only guess if that is what you are. I know he said some people have the ability to use such magic, but seeing as I can't see you, I am only guessing this is what you are."

Touya was silent momentarily, unsure of what to say to that. "Well, I was nearly worshipped by that race, but I am not apart of them, no."

Resting on her palms, she shifted her head upwards. "Worshipped? You must have some special abilities to be worshipped by that race."

He continued with soothing the injury that Neda had with his cool touch. "Well, Jin and I were passing through their area, and they nearly attacked us for intruding on their land. When they attempted to toss their spears at us, I used my ice abilities to freeze their weapons in place. Given the cold surroundings, my ice was ten times more powerful. They believed I was their 'God' reincarnated after seeing me display my power."

"Living the life of a God would have been nice, I would think," Neda said aloud. She could feel that his powers were working well on her. The pain in her ankle was slowly leaving her.

"It wasn't the life I wanted." Touya lowered his hands from Neda's injury. "She should be better now. Just make sure you wrap it up and put something cool on it."

"Thanks, Touya." Jin helped Neda to her feet by gripping her under the arms. "I will return the favor."

"Why don't you just come with us?" Neda wondered, leaning on the redhead for support.

Touya couldn't help but chuckle at Neda's response. "Unless you want to wear that thing around your eyes, I think it is a wise idea I remain here." The ice master slithered back towards the nesting area to curl back up for the night. "Besides, I won't be far. If you ever need me again, I am sure Jin will drag you here." Crossing his arms in front of him, Touya lowered his chin upon them.

Jin smiled down at his friend. "Thank you, Touya. I am thankful for your help." He witnessed as his friend merely smiled his 'welcome' back before closing his eyes to continue sleeping. Jin helped Neda back to Rose, who he had parked further away from the nesting site. "Once we get home, I will remove the blindfold."

"Why not remove it now?" Neda asked as she struggled to find her way back onto her horse. "It isn't like I can see you friend now. I don't know why you're making me wear this stupid thing anyways."

The former demon moved in front of the blindfolded Neda to grab onto the reins of the horse. "I am afraid Touya is someone who gets first appearance judgments by people. He doesn't like that too much, so that is why I asked you to wear it." Jin snapped the reins, causing Rose to head off towards the farm. "And the reason I don't have you remove it now is because I am sure you know where this area is, and if given the chance, you'll try to come back here to find him. I don't need that," he admitted with a light chortle.

Neda grinned at Jin's words. "Clever one, you are." She kept her arms about Jin's front to stay anchored on the horse's back. She couldn't help but think about what happened back at the bar they were at. "Jin, I am sorry about what I said earlier. It isn't in my place to tell you how you should live your life; especially if it is your tradition to do so."

Jin merely gazed over his shoulder at the blindfolded woman before looking back to the dark road ahead. "I understand why you said what you did, and I am sorry for causing that kind of pain. I was unaware." He was silent, dwelling on when he first met Lily. "Lily said the same thing to me, and I am sure if our lives were different, she would have been with me. I regret that in this lifetime, I may not be able to be with her."

"…You love her, don't you?" Neda inquired, her heart squishing in pain at wanting to ask such a bold question and fearing the answer.

"You don't sound like you want to know the answer to that," Jin pointed out over the clopping of Rose's hooves. When Neda didn't respond, he sighed to himself. "Yes, I did and I do love her regardless of how the seasons have changed her appearance. The many seasons haven't changed what a wonderful woman she is inside. That is what I am most fond of in her." He couldn't help but smile thinking about the blind woman back at the farm.

Neda rested her cheek on Jin's back. She was relieved at that moment that the redhead kept the blindfold on her, so her tears couldn't be seen to reveal her hurt heart.

When the two were back at the farm and everyone was turned in for bed, Neda found herself unable to sleep. She sat upright in her bed, wide-awake. With all of the feelings rushing through her, Neda just couldn't find it within herself to go to sleep so soon. Her feet meeting the floor, she made her way quietly to the door to step out into the hallway to quietly crossover to her parents' old bedroom Lily was now using. Opening the door, she found the blind woman sleeping, sure enough. "Lily?" She called quietly before making it closer to the large bed. "Lily, wake up."

Lily moaned slightly at being disturbed so early. "Neda…?" She inquired wearily. Lily covered her mouth to stifle her yawn. "What is the matter, dear?"

Neda wasn't sure how to explain herself. "You said that one of these days I should settle down like my sister and start a family, right?" She heard Lily exhaustedly agree in the room only lit by moonlight. "What if the person I want cares for someone else?"

Turning over onto her side where she knew Neda was sitting, Lily's blank eyes shifted about in the darkness. "Seeing as you're being so private about it, I won't ask whom it is you're eyeing," she yawned. "What brought this about, hmm?"

"I had a talk with Jin tonight," Neda explained somberly. She brought her knees together, tucking her hands deep within her nightgown to hide the pressure she was putting into her fists. "And I yelled at him for what he thought about marriage and love. I guess a part of it made sense, but I don't know. I just wish he wouldn't feel he has to tie himself to many people."

"It isn't within our nature to understand his traditions," said Lily, placing her hand upon her chest. "Besides, Jin is a bit of a wild animal. Maybe in due time he will come around to seeing things differently here, but I must admit, I wouldn't have him any other way at times." A smile crept across her expression to show her enjoyment in ever mentioning his name.

Neda looked over at the blind woman in the dark room. "You're so lucky to understand him better than I do. He speaks fondly of you from time to time whenever we're alone together."

Lily was too tired to take much of the compliment in. She merely yawned with a smile. "Is that so? He is a dear friend." With another yawn to follow, Lily buried her face back into her pillow. "It is late, Neda. Perhaps you should save your concerns for later in the day. I am sorry for being so tired, but it has been a long day, you see."

"My apologizes." Neda pushed herself up off of Lily's bedside to bow out of the room. "I will see you in the morning." Her feelings, however, were still not sated. Looking down the dark stairs, she slowly made her way to the bottom to hear Jin snoring on the sofa. Turning the corner, she saw the redhead fast asleep, sure enough. Neda didn't bother getting too close in hopes of not waking him. Her hand merely resting upon the end of the sofa, she heard the redhead stop in his snoring making her realize he was waking up.

Jin grumbled, stirring slightly in his sleep. He knew someone was within the room with him. He lifted his head to peer over his shoulder into the dark to see Neda standing there. "Ah, Neda. What are you doing up so late?"

"I couldn't sleep," Neda admitted quietly in the dark. She moved her hands across the sofa to find a place for her to sit near the former demon.

Jin moved his legs a bit so Neda would have a place to sit down. His wild red hair was quite messy and tossed about from sleeping on it. He stared at the young woman through his long, red bangs. "Is there something the matter?" When Neda didn't answer, he withdrew the question. "I guess that is a silly thing to ask."

Neda was quiet, as she fidgeted a bit. "You must have really loved your last wife you had." She witnessed in the darkness as the redhead turned away from her. "I have no doubt you are capable of loving many people at once, Jin. Even in the short time I have gotten to know you, I am aware that is how you are."

The redhead smiled in the dark. "You're still bothered by it. I can tell." When Neda didn't answer, Jin moved his hand over towards her hair to gently roll his fingers through her stringy tresses. His palm moved to her cheek to cup the flesh tenderly in attempts to make her look at him. When he moved in a bit closer, he witnessed as Neda tensed up and almost backed away nervously. He knew she didn't want to be kissed directly, causing him to move his lips upon her cheek.

She found the gesture kind. Neda returned it with a tight hug in the moonlight. "Thanks for being here, Jin…" It was difficult for her to get the words she wanted out right. Moving in closer, Neda rested her cheek upon his shoulder. _I just don't have the guts to put my heart on the line for him._


	31. Chapter 31

Winter soon ascended upon the world, leaving it colder than when it was in the fall. Jin was used to it after being out in the wild so much with Touya and the others. He didn't wear as much clothing as Neda did whenever she had to be out and about dealing with the farm chores. Jin stayed inside that day to help Lily with breakfast, as the winter was really causing pain in the old woman's joints.

"She seems quite cheerful today," Jin admitted, as he helped cook the eggs and bacon.

"Neda always is when the first patch of snow lands," Lily said, her old fingers hunting for the bread to cut some of it into slices. "Nash starts to come into town more often, and she enjoys her time with him."

Hearing that name, Jin paused in his actions to watch Neda outside. She was jumping around in the snow to make the small kittens they had found nearby in mid-fall out in the woods chase after her. "So who is this Nash guy? I heard he was a winter elf, and I know who they are, but I thought they never come down from the mountains."

Lily ignored the amount of jealousy she could hint in his voice. She just smiled at his concern. "Nash met Neda when heading to Eytheria's Market Square. He heads down there from time to time regardless of what most humans think of him." Grabbing up the bread, she made her way over towards the table to place the plate down in the center as she usually did. "I think he really likes Neda, but Neda doesn't see it. Or she sees it and refuses to pursue it."

"So you just let her meet up with him?" Jin inquired, finishing with the eggs and bacon to put on the table as well. "Have you ever met this guy?" He couldn't help but feel a bit protective over the farm girl given his position.

"No, I am afraid I haven't," Lily admitted, as she finished setting the table. "But given he has been with her for a few years now and hasn't done anything, I trust him."

Jin grumbled to himself, crossing his arms over his chest. "Well, I am afraid I don't. I haven't met the guy."

Lily couldn't help but giggle at the tone the former wind master was using. "Don't tell me you're jealous." She could hear Jin growling lowly at being caught, apparently, by that statement. "Jin, my dear, you can't possibly get jealous over any guy that comes into Neda's life. And if all you're going to do is sit there and be jealous, you're going to lose her if you don't speak up about how you feel."

"I know you can sense a lot of things, Lily, but even you cannot tell me how I feel about Neda," Jin pointed out, as he headed for the front door to call in the farm woman. Just as he was about to open the door, he saw Lily lean on the table with her taking a steady breath. "Lily?" He hurried over towards the elderly woman to place his hands on her shoulders. "Lily, are you okay?"

"Yes, sweetie, I am fine," Lily practically lied with her right hand upon her chest. "It was just a small pain. I should be alright. During winter I always get these pains in my body." She found her way down to her chair with Jin's help. "My body is just not as young as it used to be."

"As long as you are okay." Jin made sure Lily was comfortable before calling for Neda to come inside for breakfast. He kept the door open for her when she came dashing up the porch to make her way inside with the kittens trailing behind her. "Glad to see that your babies are following behind you."

"They're cute, hu?" Neda chuckled, as she scooped up the pure white one. "This one is almost impossible to find in the snow."

Jin made sure that the kittens were inside before shutting the door to join everyone at the table. "It is nice to see the snow out and about. I am sure Touya will be enjoying this kind of weather." He couldn't help but smile thinking about his friend. The warmer months were always hard on the ice demon.

"A friend of mine is usually out and about more around this time as well," Neda expressed joyfully, as she thought about Nash. "He'll no doubt be staying in Eytheria just to be nearby."

Hearing her get all excited made Jin annoyed inside. He tried his best not to express it, as he didn't want to upset Neda about how he felt about things. "So who is this guy? I have heard you talk about him from time to time, but I cannot say I have ever met him." Jin wasn't aware that his tone sounded heavy to everyone else listening.

"He's a winter elf, Jin," Neda mentioned with her mouth slightly full. "I am sure your friend might know who he is. He was no doubt at the village you both stumbled upon back when you two were traveling together." When she saw Jin's expression refuse to change, she hummed in thought. "So what is it to you anyways? Are you just being overprotective or are you jealous?" She teased the last word, not imagining the redhead to express such a feeling, but Neda knew it was possible he could.

Jin eyed her irritably. "I am not jealous! Why does everyone keep saying that!" He exclaimed, banging his fists on the table.

"Because maybe you are," Neda teased. Even though she had talked her heart out of the race with Jin, she couldn't help but tease him ever chance she got. "Don't worry your pretty head off, Jin," continued Neda, as she finished her breakfast in record time. "Just because I hang out with Nash doesn't mean anything is going to happen. I promise."

Lily chuckled to herself, listening to the two bicker. She could hear Neda walk up the steps soon enough to go to her bedroom to change. "If you're worried about anything happening, Jin, why don't you go down there to talk to him?" When Jin didn't respond, she tilted her head slightly while staring across the room. "Jin, I may not be able to read your mind, but I know what you're feeling. You need to either situation your feelings or let Neda do as she pleases."

"I can't tell her anything," expressed Jin, as he gazed down at his half eaten food. "Eventually I'll turn back into a snake demon, and she will hate me for what I am. She will hate me for all the lies I've had to feed her."

The blind woman smiled, as she got to her feet steadily. "Sometimes love and friendship can change people's views on others." Finding her way to Jin's side, she touched his shoulder gently. "Just understand that I do believe Neda has feelings for you as well. I am sure she's still trying to get over them, but you might end up losing someone who really cares for you." Lily made it over to the staircase only to stop and hunch over slightly.

Jin caught her actions once more. "Lily? Are you okay?" Once more he hurried over to her side to check and make sure she was alright. "Are you sure you're fine? This is the most I have seen you in pain."

"You're a kind man, Jin," Lily whispered to him as a smile slowly formed upon her lips. "Why don't you go into town with Neda? I am sure you can meet Nash and get to see for yourself what you think about him. Just be careful what you decide." She touched Jin's hand before bringing it to her lips to kiss it tenderly. Carefully, she made her way up the stairs to turn into the bedroom she was occupying.

On the way to Eytheria with Neda stirring the black mare, Jin couldn't help but think back on how Lily was acting earlier. It was beginning to worry him greatly. "So tell me, does Lily usually act as though she is in pain around this time of the seasons?" He asked curiously.

"She does in her hands mostly," Neda answered over the roaring wind. "Why do you ask?" With the drawbridge coming up, the two didn't need to stop for anything, seeing as they didn't have any hidden cargo.

"Well, she was acting like it was more than in her hands." Jin admitted he was a bit worried about leaving Lily behind given the way she was acting; however, all of that disappeared when he saw the winter elf standing within the crowd of people. He easily recognized him as what he was, given the clan he and Touya ran across once.

"Nash!" Neda exclaimed, as she halted the horse to dismount off of Rose quickly. Running towards the winter elf with her arms opened, she hugged the man. "How have you been? I haven't seen you in awhile now."

"I have been alright, Neda. It is good to see the snow once more covering this land," Nash admitted, as he hugged the woman in his soft blue cape he had upon his back. Spying the redhead that she had come riding in with, he offered a smile to Jin before speaking to Neda once more. "Who is he?"

Jin scrunched his nose up at the display, dismounting off of Rose next. "My name is Jin, and I live with Neda on the ranch." His voice was thick with slight aggression. It was obvious to everyone but him. "I guess you must be Nash."

"Indeed, that would be me," Nash answered, extending his hand for Jin to accept. When the former demon took his hand and shook it, Nash could feel the tension within it. He kept his cool, regardless of what signals Jin was giving out. "Not to be rude, but I was only expecting Neda on this visit. What brings you here as well?"

"He is here because he doesn't know who you are, and I am sure, it is because he doesn't trust you," Neda said on Jin's behalf. She felt a slight nudge come from the former wind master, making her express her discomfort between the two of them. "It is true," she whispered to Jin honestly.

"You don't have to be so honest about it!" Jin insisted quietly.

Nash smirked a bit, knowing how the redhead was feeling. "Well, I have known Neda since she was young." He motioned for everyone to follow him, as he had plans that he wasn't about to change given the fact that Jin was along. "When I have the time, I come down here to meet with her on occasion. We've spent time with one another for many years now." Nash reached over to place his hand upon Neda's shoulder in attempts to bring her closer to himself.

Jin watched the winter elf's actions and rolled his eyes. "That is nice. I have been with her since she was ill as a young one."

"Funny," Nash chuckled lightly, "she never once mentioned you to me. You must have remained hidden well."

Hearing the two getting heated with one another, Neda pulled herself from Nash's hands. "That's enough, you two! I thought we came here to enjoy ourselves." While she enjoyed teasing Jin's emotions, she couldn't bear to have Nash hit on such a topic. Neda knew it wasn't fair to the redhead.

Nash shrugged off his feelings when gazing over at Jin. "Indeed. Well, Jin, how do you feel about dancing?" He witnessed as the redhead looked over at him rather awkwardly. "You know what dancing is, right?"

"I am afraid that where I am from we never did much dancing," Jin admitted nervously. "I did a bit of singing to my wives when I was younger and played the flute. I am afraid I don't know what dancing is."

"Dancing is when you take a partner and you move about with them to a musical rhythm," Neda explained. "Nash takes me dancing almost all the time. I really enjoy doing it." She couldn't help but express a few of her moves that the winter elf was able to teach her when they danced together.

Jin witnessed Neda's moves, placing his finger to his lips a bit confused yet intrigued by what she could do. "Well, I am a bit new to this, but I am sure I can try and figure out how to move like that." When the place Nash was taking them came into view, Jin couldn't help but look up at the swinging sign a bit anxiously. He had a hard enough time trying to walk on the two feet he was given, let alone do anything graceful with them.

"Care to join us?" Nash asked, seeing Jin becoming hesitant. He couldn't help but grin on the inside, finding something that the redhead couldn't possibly outshine him at.

"I am afraid all I can do is watch for now." Jin didn't want to make a fool out of himself just to try and impress Neda. Walking inside, he stepped off to the side, nodding at Nash with his arms crossed over his chest. "Let's see what impressive things you can do with your feet."

"Watch and learn, Jin," Nash insisted, taking Neda's hand into his own. The winter elf took to the center of the building to start dancing amongst the others who were learning their own classical dance.

Jin watched as the two gracefully glided across the floor. He couldn't help but watch the two closely with his mouth opened in awe. Never was he given the opportunity to watch humans do such a thing before. It all looked too complicated for him to understand, but Jin's interest in it made him forget about that detail.

"So who exactly is he?" Nash asked between him and Neda. He figured being that the dance was always a personal affair between two people, and it wouldn't hurt to talk about the redhead a bit more. "Not once did you ever mention him to me that I can recall."

"Oh, well, when my parents died, my sister and I got a letter that was signed by him and his friend. Behind the scenes they watched us, I guess. That's what Lily told me," Neda explained, as she spun around under Nash's order. "Just last summer he showed up and decided to stay for a bit to watch over me. He was living with some boy in Neldron Village, I believe."

Nash continued to move about the dance floor with Neda cautiously, but not without sparing a few glances at the redhead sitting on the sidelines. "So what is he to you?"

Neda couldn't help but stop in her dancing to look disparagingly up at the winter elf. "That's a rather personal question, don't you think? What he means to me shouldn't be any of your business."

He could tell that he asked the wrong question. "I am sorry, Neda, but it feels like it is a business of mine." Nash witnessed as Neda looked the other way rather angrily. "I didn't mean to be so straightforward, Neda." Here, he cupped her chin to make the young woman look his way. "I've known you since you were young, and I have watched you grow from the angry, small little thing into the woman you are today." Leaning in a bit closer, Nash boldly placed his lips on Neda's.

Jin's expression of awe turned to shock at having to witness a passionate kiss between two people. It struck a cord with him in many ways. Not wishing to stay and continue to view such displays much longer, he made his way out of the building to find an exit to the outside of the stonewalls.

Realizing what they were doing, Neda widened her eyes and pushed away from Nash gently. "Nash, I am flattered…"

The elf could tell her voice trailed off. "But there is someone else on your mind, isn't there?"

Neda lowered her head, knowing that it would be too much for her heart to bear if she ever dared try anything with the redhead. "It is something like that," she answered vaguely. Not able to watch Nash, she turned to the side to put some of her hair behind her ear. "It is a bit complicated." Thinking back on Jin, she looked over at where she knew he was last standing. Neda's eyes widened in panic realizing he was no longer there. "Where did Jin go?" She asked Nash before hurrying over to the door to look out in the streets.

Nash pointed to the west upon them being outside. "He went that way. I can sense him from here." The winter elf had a higher sense of smell than Neda, and he could pick up the redhead's scent from where he was. "If you want, I can lead you to him."

Jin had made it out the western gate into the snow to watch from a distance, as the sun was about to set. He leaned against one of the nearby bare trees to watch the multicolored sunset painting the horizon. "What are you doing?" Jin asked aloud to himself with an annoyed sigh. "Things are different in the human world, and I just have to accept that." Hearing someone coming up behind him, Jin turned his head to see Neda and Nash both there at the top of the staircase, which led out of the castle town, looking down at him.

Neda could tell that Jin obviously didn't want to be bothered by two people. "Let me talk to him alone," she begged between them. With the winter elf staying back, Neda slowly came down beside the redhead. "Hey," she spoke softly, unsure of what to say exactly.

"You didn't have to come looking for me," Jin expressed, as he leaned against the nearby wall. "I just needed a moment to be out on my own."

Silent for awhile, Neda looked out at the sunset with Jin. "I know you saw us kissing. I am sorry, Jin. I didn't know he was going to do that." She crossed her arms over the thick, stone railing about the stairs leading out of the city to rest her chin. "But to be honest, it felt kind of nice to feel someone kissing me and meaning it."

"No need to be sorry," Jin admitted. "Besides, I am not sure why I am acting this way." He looked over at Neda out of the corner of his eye. "I shouldn't be the way to tell you what you should and shouldn't do with your life. As long as it makes you happy, that is all that should matter to me."

Neda's eyes shined with tears that threatened to overtake her, though she held back. She didn't wish to have Jin witness her cry. A smile creeping across her face, she wrapped her arms around Jin's closest. "I think we should go home. It has been quite the day for the both of us."

The moon was resting high within the sky by the time the two of them made their way back to the Cormac Farm. When Rose was put back in the stables, Neda and Jin made their way to the house together. Jin still found it difficult to look at Neda directly after the awkward situation earlier, but he didn't mind holding the door open for her.

Neda was just as quiet, as she smiled her thanks to him before entering the house. She found the building to be very quiet that night without Lily there to meet them. "Wonder where Lily is," she wondered aloud, as she made her way upstairs with Jin trailing behind her.

"She is probably asleep," Jin whispered in the hallway. "I'll check on her and make sure she's okay." Seeing Neda about to head to her bedroom, Jin stopped her for a second so he could kiss her on the forehead. "Goodnight, Neda. Sleep well." Opening the door to Lily's bedroom, Jin made his way inside to find the woman turning in bed.

"Jin…?" Lily asked wearily from where she was lying under the covers. "Is that you, dear?"

"Yes, Lily," Jin answered from the darkness, as he sat down beside. "I am sorry. I don't mean to scare you at all." He reached over to stroke her on the head gently. "Are you feeling okay?"

Lily smiled at the redhead's concern. "I should be alright for a little awhile, Jin." She was lying, but Lily didn't feel like telling the former demon the truth. "So what happened tonight? Did you get to meet Nash?"

Jin chuckled sarcastically with a roll of his eyes. "Yes, and I think the guy is a jerk." Feeling he had been on his feet long enough, he kicked his boots off before lying beside the blind woman. "When he was dancing with Neda, he kissed her. I couldn't find it within myself to watch anymore and ran from the scene to let them do as they pleased." He sighed somberly. "I think she loves him."

"You don't sound too thrilled, my dear," whispered Lily with a slight cough.

"I told her I should just be happy for her," Jin went on to explain. "I feel like I should, but I cannot put aside my own feelings." He reached over and placed his hand on top of Lily's. "How can you humans live like this?"

"How are we so different?" Lily asked with a smile, her blank eyes shifting about. She could feel the demon's breath on her face.

Jin lied on his back to gaze up at the ceiling above him. "Whenever I was in love, I would charm a woman into my clan and have her be mine. I would have all these females to love and care for. None of them complained about how I cared for them. But here, humans can only have one lover. If you ever have more than one person to love, it causes problems and heartache for the other woman."

"That is the way life is in the human world," yawned Lily. "We're animals that mate for life and to one lover." Carefully, she moved her hand about the covers to find Jin's face to stroke his cheek. "You have to make a choice on what to do, dear. You can either be with Neda and only Neda, or you can go back to being a demon again and find the many women you desire in your dreams. That is up to you, Jin. I just hope you make the right decision. Remember that it is going to be one you have to live with."

Smiling, Jin moved closer to kiss Lily on the cheek. "Thanks, Lily. I am thankful I have you nearby."

Lily felt Jin about to move out of the bed to head downstairs to sleep. She was quick to find his wrist and grab onto it tightly. "Jin, would you mind sleeping here with me tonight?"

He found her offer rather awkward. Lily was always fine to sleep alone, so Jin wasn't sure what it was that had her desiring him to remain by her side. "Sure," Jin whispered between them, as he got back under the covers once he removed his shirt from his back. Tossing his shirt upon the floor, he moved in closer to Lily. "If you need me, I am right here."

"I just may," she was quick to respond in labored breaths. "Just be warned if I wake you in the middle of the night sometime, my dear. Goodnight, Jin." Facing the former wind master, she closed her clouded eyes and drifted off into sleep.

Jin was worried throughout the coming hours as to what she meant by that. He couldn't find it within himself to get any sleep after their conversation. During the night, he found Lily moaning in discomfort before coughing harshly. Jin quickly jumped to attention to check on the blind woman. "Lily, are you okay?"

Lily grabbed tightly onto Jin's wrist, almost gasping for air. The pain in her chest was too much for her to bear at that moment, and she knew it was possibly going to be all over for her.

"Neda!" Jin yelled several times, hoping to get help in the matter. When the door flew open to reveal the startled young woman there, he looked back down at the suffering Lily. "Get help! Quickly, find a doctor!"

Neda didn't bother asking any questions. Running out the door, she was back outside in her nightgown and bare feet to grab one of the stabled horses to run to the nearest town for aid in the situation.

"Lily, can you hear me?" He asked with worry. "You're going to be okay. You're going to be alright, I promise!"

"Jin, let's not be silly…" Lily expressed breathlessly and in pain, as she clasped the area where her heart was. "It is time for me to go. I have been on this earth long enough…" Her free, old, weary hand grabbed onto the covers beneath her hoping the pain would stop soon enough. "I was told my heart was getting weak, and I would have to go soon. I am glad you're here while that happens…!" She closed her eyes tightly and breathed in unsteadily. "Please watch over Neda for me…no matter what. She was the daughter I never had." Tears escaped from her clouded eyes. "I love you too, Jin, and I am sorry the circumstances weren't different…I will finally get to see what you look like in heaven when my sight is returned…"

Jin felt underneath his hands as Lily seemed to stop struggling finally. The mere feel of her body when he shook it made him uneasy, as it felt like an empty shell. "L-Lily…? Lily, can you hear me?" When the woman didn't answer, Jin felt his heart sink. "Lily! **LILY**!" He yelled, crying on what remained of her.

* * *

After Lily's funeral back in Eytheria, Jin found himself facing the loss of another that he held close to himself. Sitting down on an empty bench behind the stone walls, he thought back on the moment she passed. It was the hardest thing he ever had to witness. Hearing someone coming his way, Jin looked up to see Thane there beside him. "Hey," he whispered sorrowfully with his forearms resting on his thighs.

"I am sorry about your loss," Thane apologized, as he joined the redhead. "Lily was a great woman. She really helped those girls when their parents died."

"I feel like such a selfish fool," Jin admitted angrily at himself. "Earlier that day she was showing she was in pain before I left to watch over Neda and her time with Nash. I should have spent the entire day with her after seeing her in discomfort."

Thane reached over nervously to place his hand on Jin's shoulder. "Jin, we cannot predict when someone is going to die. I am sure she didn't want to tell you, because she wanted you to spend time with Neda." He shrugged, pulling his hand back to his side. "Lily always thought about others before herself. I think if she had children, she would have made a great mother."

"She had her children," said Jin, as he gazed over at Neda and Blythe consoling one another. "And she was the happiest she had ever been."

Following Jin's gaze, he couldn't help but smile with agreement. "You can't say she didn't live a happy life. And to my understanding, that was all thanks to you leading her to them." Getting to his feet, Thane offered his hand to Jin to help him up as well. "How about we all head somewhere to eat and have fun? There is actually a nice town not too far from here that has the most exotic foods and great entertainment. We can take the ladies with us. It'll give everyone a peace of mind."

Jin smiled up at Thane sincerely for the first time in awhile. "I like that idea." Taking Thane's hand, he got to his feet. "You go ahead with the girls; I'll catch up in a moment." When Thane went to go tell Neda and Blythe the idea, the redhead made his way over to the graveyard, which was not too far, to spy Lily's tombstone. Kneeling down on one knee, he ran his fingers over the lettering. "How do I look to you now, Lily?" He asked quietly.


	32. Chapter 32

**_AN_**: Sex scene removed further down. Unedited is on MediaMiner. Weeeee, no sleep yet, and it is 11:11 AM... xD

* * *

Jin took the reins of Rose to ride behind Thane and Blythe. He knew Neda wasn't in the mood to take control of the horse. "You know she really cared about you like her own daughter, Neda," Jin felt the need to say in order to break the silence that consumed the air, as they were making their way to this village Thane spoke of earlier.

"I know," Neda responded quietly. "She told me almost every day." She leaned against the back of the former demon, sighing heavily. "I am really going to miss her."

"I know I will as well." Jin witnessed as the edge of the woods were coming into view. He wasn't sure where this village was, but he was aware that living in the woods couldn't be safe for the villagers given the demons that usually lived there. Lampposts could be seen just outside of the woods where the entrance to the town was. He stopped beside Thane, confused. "Why would a village be within the woods? I thought most around here were out in the plains."

"They usually are," Thane answered, as he dismounted off of his armored horse before helping down his wife. "But these villagers don't seem to mind that they are in demon infested 'waters'."

"I guess some people are comfortable around them," Jin said, as he too got off of the black mare to help Neda down next.

"I cannot imagine why," Neda grumbled, having to recall the night her parents died. "They are heartless creatures that only care for themselves."

Jin felt slapped by the comment that Neda had to say about his own kind. "Don't say that! Snake demons aren't bad. They take care of huge families and provide for them as well." Even though everyone was giving him weird looks, he didn't care. Lily was an obvious demon lover, so he didn't feel he had to hide his feelings towards it. "They are no different from the human race."

"Well, I can guess how you and Lily met and became so close so fast then," Blythe pointed out, noting the similarities in the interest of demons between the two. "I don't know how you two ever manage to get close enough without being mauled to death by them or poisoned."

"Snake demons only attack when they or their nest feel threatened or cornered," Jin explained from his own experience. He followed behind Thane, as the knight led them through the village, which apparently had a majority of houses built with lumber. He had to admit that it looked exotic compared to any of the human villages he had been to. "Are you sure this place belongs to humans? When you said the food and everything was exotic, I was expecting something a little less…well…like this."

"The people here are more in tune with nature," Thane explained, as he pulled aside a hanging drape, which served as an entrance to one of the houses. "Some people say that the women are witches, as they can tell your future, cast magic and give you potions."

Heading inside of the building, Jin saw it was only lit by many candles that were in cases and the cases were covered in different colored fabrics to give off different light in the room. It made things a bit dim, but Jin was able to see where he was going when he sat down upon a nearby pillow, which he found was on the floor near a wooden table. Many thin, multicolored curtains seemed to drape from the ceiling, and many objects littered the shelves. He could see where they might be viewed as witches.

"So you've been here before, Thane?" Blythe asked, situating her dress underneath her.

"I couldn't help but love the thought of magic when I was growing up," Thane admitted, as he took a look at their menu. "I used to come here whenever I was able upon my shift being over. They would read me my fortune whenever I asked, and they were usually right."

Neda rolled her eyes playfully. "Superstitious, Thane?"

Thane raised his hands with a chuckle at her words. "Call it whatever you like, but I enjoy it far too much to ever give it up." Giving his order to the woman who soon came to ask for it, he nodded over at Jin with a smirk. "Maybe you should have your fortune told. I'd like to see what they manage to dish up for you."

Jin shook his head nervously. "No, I'd rather not. Having someone look into such things seems rather impersonal to me."

Neda nudged the redhead beside her gently. "What harm could it do? I am sure there are a few things you'd like to have answered."

The woman serving their drinks heard most of the conversation, and she couldn't help but smile with intrigue at the redhead they were talking to. "You wish to have your future read?" She asked in a smooth sounding tone. The brunette with long, flowing hair put the teacup right in front of Jin before kneeling beside him. "We can do it for you, if you wish."

Jin couldn't help but spare a look at those around him who were trying to give him encouraging looks. "I am not so sure," he said with a wave of his hand, hoping she'd go about her business.

The woman was quick to grab his wrists gently. "You sound like you are interested, but you wish to hide something from those around you." She watched as Jin continued to try and pretend that wasn't the idea. Opening up his palm, she ran her fingertips along certain lines on his palms. "If you do not trust me, allow me to prove myself. It says here that you are much older than you are letting on to be. You actually have the longest lifeline I have ever seen on a person outside of a winter elf or a…demon." Her aqua colored eyes looked up at Jin with a slight smirk.

The redhead was quick to pull his hand away. "If you are so eager to read my future, past, or present, I'd like to hear it in private if that is okay."

Everyone at the table found it odd that he wanted to go into a private room just to be told what everyone thought would be alright to hear. Neda had never seen Jin so nervous before. She could tell he was slightly shaken by whatever it was that was told to him.

"I am sure the food will be awhile," said the woman, as she got to her feet before helping Jin. "This way, sir." She led Jin through another door within the same building. Within the room was a majority of candles and a simple table in the center with a large, crystal ball upon said table. "Please, have a seat," she insisted, pointing to the empty chair before taking her own.

"I notice you speak with an accent," Jin commented, as he took the chair she was pointing towards. "People say I have one when I speak in English, but I don't really catch it."

"You do have one, and I think I know why," she admitted with a smile. Taking in a deep breath, she focused on the crystal ball in front of her before looking back at the redhead across from her. "Jin the wind master, you _**are**_ a demon. I knew I was right."

"You're not scared of me?" Jin asked with a tilt of his head.

"We live around demons, and we care for them," the woman mentioned, while waving her hand slightly over the ball to get a better picture on things. "Why would we be scared of such creatures?" She narrowed her eyes slightly at the object in front of her to try and make out the images better. "It says here you went to see a wizard to become human, but it shows you going back to snake demon form. How long do you have?"

"I have a year," Jin answered simply. "It was because the girls out there, I was asked to watch over them by their mother's wishes."

"I can see that as well," the woman noted. She had a serious frown upon her face before it suddenly turned into a mischievous grin. In the dim lighting, she bit her lower lip with a light chuckle. "The youngest girl out there who you were sitting next to—you have a desire to be with her." She watched as Jin was about to turn away from her in embarrassment. "Don't act so uncomfortable. I can obviously see that you don't like to admit to it, eh?"

"It just isn't something I like to speak about. It is confusing for me to try and be in love with a human who doesn't know I am not human," Jin confessed honestly between the two of them.

She looked seriously up at the redheaded demon. "There are a few other things I see you don't like to talk about either. The death of your mate and the death of those girls' parents was your accidental doing. As well as something about a blind woman, I see."

"Don't talk about that, please," Jin begged, lowering his head. "I don't want to think about it right now."

"On to happier things then, eh?" Straightening her back, she focused her sight back into the crystal ball to try and look deeper within the future. "Says here that something is going to happen between you and Neda." Her reassuring smile turned into a disappointed frown. "That can't be good…"

"What? What is the matter?" Jin asked eagerly, leaning forwards in his chair. "What do you see?"

"I am not sure if I should tell you," the fortuneteller insisted quietly between them. She took the covering, which she usually placed over the ball, to place it back where it usually rested upon the item. "Don't worry too much about it, Jin. It isn't too important." Quickly, she tried to herd the redhead out of the room.

"Please, what was it that you saw?" Jin asked, turning around to stop the woman from forcing him to leave the room. When she shook her head at the thought of sparing that information, he grabbed onto her shoulders gently. "Please, please, tell me!"

Sighing heavily, she relaxed her body under his touch. "I saw death in your and the girl's future. Which one dies, I am not sure," she admitted breathlessly. "But Jin, I advise you to be careful." When the demon didn't say anything right away, she opened the door to allow him to head to the dinning room table. "Enjoy yourself." With that said, the woman headed to another group in the building to tend to them.

Jin tried to put on a smile when he sat back down with the others. He was relieved to see that their food was brought, as he was feeling a bit hungry from not having anything to eat since the funeral. "I guess I arrived just in time."

"So, what did the woman say?" Thane asked curiously, only to get elbowed by Blythe. "What? I am just interested in what she may have told him seeing as I never knew he was probably thousands of years old." It didn't want to dawn on Thane right away that Jin could possibly be demon, as he didn't believe any magic could be that powerful.

"I didn't expect you to be so old," Neda pointed out, as she lowered her fork as well to hear what Jin had to say. "I thought you told me you were in your thirties."

Jin felt a little under pressure. Without Lily there to convert the attention elsewhere, he almost felt alone. "Well, I didn't want to talk about my age, because I didn't expect it to be so important," he answered honestly, as he began to fork some of the fish into his mouth. "And I am 1,362 years old," he finally revealed with his mouth slightly full.

Everyone gasped at the table, not aware he was that old. "My goodness!" Blythe inhaled, placing her hand upon her chest. "I didn't expect you were so old!"

"You don't look like winter elf," Neda pointed out, running her fingers through his hair to look at his normal ears. "You look like a normal human to me."

"Well, I came from the east," Jin reminded everyone nervously. "One of the races there can live to be several years old. I am part of that race." He didn't wish to explain much further than that.

"I guess there is a lot about you we don't know, my friend," Thane remarked from the end of the table.

Thane and Blythe ended up heading back to their home behind the castle town walls while Neda and Jin headed back to the farm. Making it inside of the house, Jin couldn't help but feel as though it were much quieter than usual with the thought of Lily no longer being there in the building. Somberly, Jin made it towards the sofa to sit down and put his body to rest.

Neda swallowed the lump in her throat, as she watched Jin's moves. "With Lily gone, you don't have to rest there anymore." She knew it was a terrible subject to bring up, but she wanted the redhead to be comfortable. "You can sleep in my parents' old room."

"I thank you for your kindness, Neda, but I couldn't handle the thought of sleeping in that bed," Jin admitted, as he covered his face with his palms. "Having to witness her die there…I just couldn't do it."

"I understand." Neda made her way over towards Jin's side to sit down beside him. She placed her hand upon his shoulder to give him a gentle, reassuring massage. "Are you going to be alright?" Neda brought her chin to rest upon the empty space where her hand was.

Jin smiled at Neda through the darkness. "I will be alright, Neda." Leaning forwards, he kissed her upon the forehead. He let the kiss linger a moment before pulling back to eye the young woman. "It is best you get some sleep. We both have to be up early."

"I'll work on breakfast from now on, if you don't mind doing the chores about the farm," Neda said, as she got to her feet. Seeing the redhead agree, she smiled. "Alright, I will see you in the morning, Jin. Goodnight and sleep well."

"You as well, Neda," whispered Jin within the dark room. He watched from the sofa as Neda headed up the stairs to be in her bedroom soon enough. Sighing through his nostrils, Jin kicked off his boots and removed his shirt, so he could lie down on the cushions of the furniture he was upon.

Throughout the hours of the night, Jin did find it terribly difficult to sleep downstairs by himself. When he found himself tossing and turning too much, Jin got to his feet and made his way slowly upstairs. Upon making it to the last stair, the former wind master could catch the subtle sound of sobbing coming from Neda's bedroom. Jin headed over towards the door quietly, listening to the young woman cry to herself. "Neda?" He called, knocking on the door before opening it. "Are you alright?" When he made his way inside, he found that the young woman wasn't going to hide the fact she was upset.

"I am sorry," Neda apologized through her tears. "I guess I am just tired of all these deaths happening in my life."

Jin made his way over to Neda's bedside. "I am sorry they are happening to you as well," he whispered apologetically. Cautiously, he reached over to dry Neda's tears with his fingers.

Neda held onto Jin's wrist to pull his hand from her tears before looking into his eyes. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she buried her face upon his bare chest. "I am thankful that you are here, Jin." She could feel him running his fingers through her hair. It prompted her to look up into his big, blue eyes with her green. She knew what was in his eyes, and it made her nervous. "Don't kiss me unless you mean it," Neda whispered between them.

"I do mean it," Jin said quietly in return before edging closer to her lips to kiss her lovingly. He wrapped his arms around her body to bring her closer to his own. Parting from her lips for just a moment, he looked into her eyes once more. "I mean everything that I do to you." Jin guided her down to the covers beneath them, kissing her tenderly from her lower lip, to her chin, and then her neck.

"J-Jin…!" Neda exclaimed breathlessly, as she placed her hands upon his cheeks. "I am not so sure about this."

"Do you not trust me?" Jin asked. His voice seemed to hint he was a bit hurt by the thought. "I promise I won't hurt you."

"It isn't that," the young woman insisted, as she situated herself a bit about the bed. "It is just…well…I haven't done _**this**_."

Jin chuckled lightly, "No need to worry, then. I have done this before many times. I can do most of the leading in it." He ran his fingers through her long, beige tresses once more. "Think of it like dancing, in a way, as the male always leads the female as you've told me."

Neda shook her head with a smirk. "Interesting way to put things. But I am still very nervous about all of this."

The way she was acting, Jin couldn't help but think back to his past. "You remind me so much of my wife, Silver. When I was about to open her for the first time, she was just as nervous about everything." He continued to stroke the top of her head soothingly. "And I told her, everything was going to be alright, because no matter what, I would always be there with her."

Feeling she had no reason to doubt Jin, Neda moved upright on the bed, so she could remove her dress from her body. Sitting there without anything but the moonlight to clothe her, Neda looked seriously at Jin. "So far you have given me no reason to doubt you. Just be gentle with me."

"I always am when I am with someone new," Jin promised her, as he lowered her to the bed once more.

(**Edited**)

Neda arched her back upon Jin marking her. The pain subsiding for that moment, she lied down with labored breaths equal to the man's beside her. She caressed his wild hair, which was now wet with sweat, before finding the energy to punch him gently in the shoulder. "That hurt, you bastard," she joked.

Jin could only laugh wearily at her comment. "Well, you did enjoy it, didn't you?" He remained where he was, slightly on top of Neda's sweaty body. "I am sorry for the pain it caused you, but almost every woman that hasn't been touched by a man has a barrier inside of her. It bleeds when it is brought down, and it does hurt, but it has to be removed at some time for you to enjoy such things later on in life."

"I hope you don't mind me saying this, Jin, but could you please remove yourself from…" Neda paused, as she eyed downward.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to cause further pain," Jin apologized, as he moved himself from Neda's body to lie beside her. "I was hoping to get you used to my size, if anything."

Neda moved in closer to Jin to continue feeling the warmth he was emitting. "I hope you don't regret being with me. I am sorry if it means that you have to be focused on me and only me."

Jin cupped Neda's chin, so she could look him in the eyes. "I don't regret anything. If I felt I might, I wouldn't have done this." He brought the covers up and over the both of them, so they could get comfortable that night. "I will remain by your side as long as you allow me to be."

Closing her eyes, Neda was relieved to hear Jin's verbal reassurance. "Stay with me throughout the night," she begged with a subtle yawn. "I need you here now…"

Her voice trailing off, Jin knew that she had fallen asleep. With how exhausted he was as well, the former the demon couldn't help but follow behind her example.

* * *

Throughout the winter, Jin and Neda worked together to do their respective chores. Seeing as Neda was left with a good bit of knowledge of how to cook no thanks to Lily, she worked on breakfast every morning while Jin tended to the farm chores. He watched nervously as the snow was beginning to melt that day. With the seasons changing once more, Jin knew his time would eventually be up when it came to spending time with Neda. Listening to it fall from the trees, he gazed back to the house wondering what would become of Neda should he revert back and have to leave her.

_She may love me, but she doesn't love the snake demons at all_, Jin reminded himself. He had been working the past several days to try and get Neda to understand that not all snake demons were evil. Many times he found himself wishing that Lily were there, so he could ask for her advice once again.

"Jin!" Neda called from the porch, breaking the man's concentration. "Breakfast is ready if you would hurry up!"

"I'll be right there!" He shouted back, as he leaned against the chicken coop. Jin was finished with his chores, so he couldn't help but think on a small way to try and show his affection that day.

Neda removed the apron and placed it back on the empty counter space before lowering her hair she often kept in a bun whenever cooking. Noticing that Jin was heading towards the house, she looked quickly in the nearest reflective surface to make sure her hair looked decent before Jin was to enter. The door opening and revealing the man, Neda smiled with her arms opened to hug him. "What took you so long?" She asked, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Sorry, I get lost in thought so easily." Jin pulled out a simple bouquet of daisies, which were growing nearby the farm. "I thought you might like these."

Taking the flowers, Neda couldn't help but sway from side to side with a bit of a blush. "You're too sweet." Leaning up best she could, she managed to kiss the former demon on the cheek. "I'll just put these in water."

Since she was occupied with the flowers he handed to her, Jin moved to his seat to get his plate ready. "Everything that I managed to round up in terms of crops, eggs, and such I put just outside." Everyday, Neda still took to the roads to sell their crops while Jin watched over the farm.

"Thanks, dear." After putting the flowers in a free container she was able to put water in, Neda took her seat at the table to eat her breakfast. "What do you have planned for the day?"

"Norris sent me a letter this morning that said he was coming this way," Jin explained, as he worked on his eggs. He nodded towards the mail he had picked up earlier in the morning that he had lying on the wooden table they were eating at. "I haven't heard from the boy in some time now, so it will be nice to spend time with him."

"Just promise me you'll be careful here, Jin," Neda begged. Whenever she left Jin alone, she was often worried that the snake demons would attack the farm and possibly cause harm to him. "I just don't think I could handle the thought of ever losing you to those…things." She knew she wasn't allowed to call them 'beasts' anymore given Jin's sensitivity to the term.

"Don't worry about me," Jin insisted from across the table. "I can easily take care of myself. It is you I am worried about." He was aware that if any snake demon ever crossed Neda's path, they wouldn't hesitate to kill her if they could. "Just promise me that you'll be safe. Just stay far from the woods, and you should be alright." With the recent war going on between the two races, Jin knew that snake demons wouldn't crawl out into plain sight.

Neda finished her breakfast before Jin. She was always good at eating quickly to get on about her day. "Don't worry about me, Jin. Rose is my best horse. She can always easily get me out of any trouble and to safety."

Jin couldn't help but feel a bit jealous just over the praise Neda often gave that horse. The jealousy would often try to talk him into eating the beast, but he refused the thought knowing that Neda loved that creature. "Well, you be careful out there, regardless. I don't want anything to happen to you." Walking over to the woman, he grabbed onto her shoulders gently to kiss her lovingly. When he pulled back from the kiss, he stroked her cheeks with his thumbs. "Be well."

"I will. I promise," Neda assured the redhead before parting from his touch to make it back outside to get things together for her trip to the local towns.

Jin helped Neda get everything situated for her trip before standing back to wave her goodbye, as she headed on her way down the dirt road. Pocketing his hands, he made his way back towards the house to await Norris' arrival. Just as his hand was about to land on the doorknob, he heard something rustling within the bushes. "Who is there?" He asked defensively. Jin admitted he was a bit worried, because he didn't have his wind abilities. His stressful stance, however, turned relieved when he saw Touya peeking out from behind the bushes. "T-Touya…? What are you doing here? You could get in trouble!"

"I would come by every now and again and check on things," Touya admitted, as he sniffed the air to make sure everything was safe. "I don't see Lily around as often. What happened to her?" His scaly underbelly rubbed against the boards beneath him, as Touya crawled up onto the porch.

"She died…some time ago," Jin answered somberly. "They told me that her heart just randomly stopped working—that it was old." He made his way over to the rocking chair on the porch to sit down.

"I am sorry…but sadly, humans do have short life spans." Touya looked out at the melting snow before gazing back at Jin seriously. "Your time will soon be up when everything begins to bloom again. Did you or did you not tell Neda what you truly are?"

"She still thinks our kind is evil," Jin sighed, placing his knuckles against his cheek. "I don't think there really is an easy way to explain everything that has happened since that night when her parents died."

Touya looked at Jin disapprovingly. He was frustrated that Jin didn't find a way to explain to Neda what he was during the year he spent with her. "There is _**one**_ way—your diary." The ice master pointed at the redhead. "You wrote in that thing every day. I would imagine you wrote about that night."

"Touya, what I write in there is personal!" Jin grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest. "If I won't even let you read it, what makes you think I'd let Neda read it?"

His narrow eyes gazed up at Jin harshly. "Unless you want your transformation back into your demon form to be more painful than it should be, you'll find a way to tell her. If you don't find a way to do this, you're going to find your heart needs the most repairing, Jin." He caught the confused look in the former demon's eyes when he turned around to head back into the woods. "Don't act so surprised, Jin. It is easy to tell that you've been swaying her with actions and words of love. Any fool could see that."

Jin sighed, rolling his head back to gaze up at the ceiling above him to think. "What am I going to do?" He mumbled to himself.


	33. Chapter 33

Norris put down a cup of tea in front of Jin before sitting beside the redhead. "Be careful. It is hot," he advised with a smile. "Looks like something is on your mind."

"There is a lot on my mind, actually," Jin admitted, as he looked into the tea in front of him. "I have a secret that I don't have much time to tell before my time is over."

"Time is over?" Norris repeated while sounding a bit worried. He didn't want the thought of the man leaving again and possibly, permanently this time. "Where will you be going? You're not heading back to the east are you?"

"No, no, I am not going to the east," said Jin with a reassuring smile. "It is just a big secret I have to keep to myself for the time being. But I have to admit that I have grown fond of Neda, and I am worried about expressing this secret to her."

"Well, if she loves you, I am sure she will understand this secret of yours." Norris knew the words weren't all that comforting to Jin, but it was the only advice he could spare. "By the way, remember that festival I told you about? You know, the one I said that the King hosts?" Pulling out a slip of paper from his pocket, he slapped it down on the table to show the invitation he received. "The festival of this year is coming up. Why don't you take Neda and tell her then? It'll be held in the summer. There is food, music, and dancing—I think you may like it."

Jin accepted the piece of paper with a nod. "I think I may do that. Thanks, Norris." When a knock came upon the door, Jin and Norris looked to the front door before one another. "That is weird. I wasn't expecting anybody." Jin pulled from the table to make it to the front door to find Blythe there, appearing out of breath. "Blythe…? What are you doing here?" He noticed she was sweaty and looking rather worried.

"Jin, you have to come quickly!" Blythe begged through her labored breaths, moving some of her hair out of her face. "Snake demons attacked the village Neda was selling at, and they nearly managed to get her too!"

"What!" Jin exclaimed angrily, clutching his fists tightly at his sides.

"Thane is there with a few other knights trying to keep them at bay, but I don't know where Neda went to after the attack!" Tears began to stream down her rosy cheeks. "I am worried they might have killed her!" She covered her eyes with her palms, sobbing heavily at the thought of her sister being killed.

"Norris, come with me!" Jin demanded with a wave of his hand. Running to the horse that the young man had brought with him, Jin turned around to wave at Blythe. "Stay in the house! We will return with Neda; I promise you!" Jumping on the horse's back with Norris' help, he held onto the young man's shoulders. "If I remember right, she said she'd be heading to a Meldrune Village for the most part today!"

"Then that is where we shall go!" Norris exclaimed, snapping the reins against the horse before gently nudging it with his heels.

Meldrune Village was to the southwest area of Eytheria. Just as the two were riding upon the gates, they could see fires dancing about the inside of the wooden built walls. The flames, however, were black in appearance. Norris dismounted off of the fearful horse to watch the fires in awe. "Those aren't normal…what could cause black flame like that?"

Jin growled angrily before charging into the village. "There is only one person I know of who can do that…!"

Inside of the village, Hiei was firing constant black, fire blasts at the oncoming knights. At the front lines with him, Shishi was using his abilities to commune with the dead to raise the spirits of those passed to seek out their revenge on the armored men and rip off their limbs if they got too close. "Damn beasts!" Hiei growled in demonic to the others. "They should know better by now then to trespass upon our nests and do away with one of our own!"

"Hiei, this massacre has gone on long enough!" Kurama demanded from the back in their tongue as well. He was angry at the brash demon's decision in attacking an entire village due to one of the knights sneaking in to kill a bunch of eggs unprotected. "You have proven your point! Now, let us go back before we get more killed!" Seeing a human knight about to attack Shishi from the side, he was quick to react with beckoning the earth to unleash the roots in the ground to bind the man.

"If they're going to kill my children," Shishi began angrily, sounding almost possessed by his rage, "then they shall feel our wrath!" Turning to the bound man Kurama had caught, he opened his mouth to sink his teeth into his neck to poison the human and kill him instantly.

Jin arrived on the scene just in time to watch the three attacking ruthlessly. The villagers screaming and running for their lives, the redhead ran towards the demons. "Stop this! Stop this, right now!" He yelled in English, knowing they would understand him.

Kurama recognized the voice right away. His ivy, green eyes widened at seeing Jin on two legs. "J-Jin…!" Not paying attention, the earth demon didn't notice the knight charging at him from behind until he heard Hiei's warning. Turning around, the redhead panicked at the sight knowing he wouldn't be able to react in time to save himself. All he was able to do was move to the side to have his left side cut badly by the sword.

Hiei was furious at hearing his friend yell in pain. Throwing a black fireball at the knight, he watched as the man rolled out of the way to avoid the attack. "Kurama! Are you alright!" He yelled over the flames in worry.

Falling to his side, Kurama lied there in pain from the wound. "I'll be fine…! Just get out of here!" He demanded in demonic.

"Get out of here!" Thane demanded behind the helm he was wearing, aiming his sword at the other two. "We won't hesitate to kill you and your friend when you all turn your backs to run away! Now, get!" Out of the corner of his eye, he caught Jin running towards the wounded redheaded serpent demon. "Jin, stay back! They'll kill you!"

Jin ignored Thane's wishes, kneeling down beside Kurama to move his wild, long red hair out of his face. "Kurama, are you alright?" he whispered in demonic to the creature.

"What happened to you…?" Kurama asked, hitching in breath from the pain his side was enduring. "I know you were once one of us. What sorcery is this…?"

Seeing more of the knights heading in their direction, Hiei looked over at Kurama with a furious frown at Jin watching over him. "Get away from him!" Hiei demanded, powering up the black fire in the palm of his hands defensively, as he didn't recognize Jin.

Thane was quick to jump in between the two to save Jin from an oncoming attack from Hiei. Raising his sword, the knight brought it downwards to try and wound the black haired demon or at least frighten him to the point of leaving Jin alone. "Go back to wherever you came from! I won't hesitate to kill your friend should you do anything to mine!" Thane threatened boldly.

Jin watched over his shoulder as Hiei hesitated at first before Shishi demanded they both leave. Looking back down at Kurama, he watched as the redhead demon struggled with the pain striking his side from the blade that had wounded him. With Thane so close, Jin couldn't speak in demonic to Kurama. He knew it would easily give away what he was should he choose to do so. Jin held onto Kurama's hand tightly, giving him a reassuring look that it would be alright.

Remembering the injured demon, Thane turned around to watch it lie there suffering. "Move, Jin so that I may kill it."

"Don't kill him!" Jin demanded over the roaring flames, which engulfed the village. "This demon was coming here to stop the other two! He didn't root the knights so that the others could destroy them—he wasn't expecting that!" Thane looked into Jin's eyes with bewilderment at his actions. He didn't feel like backing down at that moment. "Just like Lily, I have spent many lifetimes with these creatures. I know that they don't mean harm unless forced. Don't kill him!"

Thane looked down at the injured Kurama to see the redheaded demon gazing up at him through his hair soaked a bit in soot. Sheathing his sword, Thane nodded at Jin. "Fine, do whatever it is you wish to."

"I need to find Neda first," Jin admitted, as he helped Kurama up from the ground. "If you would please take this creature back to the farm and make sure he is bandaged up at least." He watched as Thane was about to refuse. "Thane, please! I need to make sure he is okay!"

Sighing angrily, the knight faltered and opened his arms to accept Kurama. "Fine, but you owe me big time for this one, Jin."

With everyone working quickly to put out the fires, Jin hurried through the burning town to look for Neda. Some of the buildings were collapsing under the fires that Hiei had cast about the human town. "Neda!" He yelled over the chaos, looking about desperately in search of any sign of her. Eventually, his eyes fell upon the cart Neda usually road within when she went out selling their goods. The cart was on fire and soon it fell apart. Regardless, Jin ran to the cart to check on it. "Neda!" He yelled once more, hoping there would be an answer.

The roar of the flames engulfing the carriage was Jin's only answer. Watching it fall to pieces, he backed up into Norris, who was soon right behind him. "Have you found her yet? Where is she?" He asked frantically, hoping the young woman was okay.

"I don't know where she is, dammit!" Jin swore in worry, as he placed his hands upon his head. He nearly ripped some of his hair out, as the fire appeared to be getting worse by the second. Eyeing the grass underneath them, he saw footprints embedded within the loose earth. "This must be her," he insisted to Norris, as he followed the trail. "I see blood as well…" Panicking, Jin ran off in the direction the prints were leading towards. They ended up leading all the way to the back of the village. It was closest to the mountainside overlooking the town. Pulling the bushes away, Jin found the frightened and wounded Neda curled up in hiding. "Neda!" He exclaimed, running to the frightened woman.

Neda nearly attacked Jin weakly with her fists, not realizing who it was until she settled under the former demon's touch upon her cheeks. "J-Jin…! Jin, thank the Goddess…!" Her ash and dirt covered arms wrapped around Jin tightly, as she was relieved to see he was there for her. "They came out of nowhere and attacked with fire and the undead…!" With the image haunting her, she couldn't help but cry at remembering it.

Jin held onto her tightly, kissing her several times on the lips. "I am just thankful you are alright! I was scared I lost you for a moment!"

Norris noticed several cuts along her arms and blood soaking her dress about the top. "She is hurt badly in many areas," he pointed out. "We have to get her out of here and back to the farm as well before she possibly bleeds to death." Helping Jin with Neda, Norris led the way back through the fire and out of the village.

Neda had passed out on the way back to the farm. Jin was quick to dismount and take the young woman inside with him in his arms. Opening the door, he found Blythe and Thane sitting at the dinning room table talking about the attack. Hearing Jin enter, both of them jumped to attention to see Neda was okay but in bad shape.

"Neda!" Blythe screamed, horrified. She ran over to her injured sister to check on her injuries. "Give her to me! I will take care of her!"

Jin did as he was asked before looking to Thane, who he saw was eyeing him oddly. When Blythe left the room to head into her sister's bedroom, he released a shaky sigh before heading over to the sink in hopes of wiping the blood off of his body. "Where is the demon I sent you home with?"

"He is upstairs in the parents' old bedroom," Thane answered. "I know Lily was a demon hugger, but I never expected you to want to save one like this. How do you know that he didn't go there to help with the burning of the village? You don't know what they were saying! They were speaking in that cursed language of theirs."

"It is demonic that they were speaking in, and I know this may sound weird, but they can speak in English," Jin explained, as he turned around to look at Thane from where he was standing at the sink. "Snake demons just refuse to speak in the human tongue, because they know it would frighten humans to think they could actually understand." Jin was quiet for a moment, wondering what else to add. "He isn't evil, Thane. Believe me when I tell you this. The only time he would attack anybody or anything is if anything were to cross his territory or kill anybody he cared for."

"Christ, Jin," Thane swore angrily, running his fingers through his messy hair. "You really need to be careful. Humans hate snake demons. I had to even tell some of the knights that I was taking away that demon to execute it myself." He witnessed as Jin lowered his head. "I guess if you're so intent on believing this, I have no choice but to listen. However, be warned that Neda won't be so forgiving of this. She hates those creatures for what they did to her parents."

"Thanks, Thane," said Jin with a slight smile. "I am going to go check on the demon. I have a few things to ask of him." When his body was cleaned of blood and ash, Jin made his way up the stairs to make it into the bedroom on the right. Opening the door, he found he large, earth demon sprawled out over the covers. Kurama's scaly half was all over most of the bed while the other was about the floor. He saw that the demon had been bandaged up from the attack. "Kurama, are you okay?" Jin whispered, upon making it to the demon's side.

Hearing his name being called, Kurama opened his eyes slowly. "Jin, it is you," he said with praise. "How did you become human?"

"I went to Suzuka," Jin explained, as he sat down beside the large snake demon. "I still felt I had things to do here, at this farm, so I returned to do so for a years time." He looked at the bandaged wound on Kurama's side. "What happened to cause that massacre?"

Kurama rested his head back down on the pillow he was lying upon. "One of the knights came into our nest and destroyed the eggs belonging to one of Shishi's mates." He closed his eyes, remembering the rage that overran Shishi when he found out. "Hiei had already suffered a few losses himself and wanted just as much revenge, so they went to the local town and started to destroy it. It was halfway gone by the time I got there to try and talk them back home." Opening his eyes, he looked back over at Jin with a slight shrug. "I wish this would all end. If the knights ever killed us years ago, it was when we were too close to other humans. Now they just go hunting for us."

"You're not the only one," Jin sighed. "The thing is, demons aren't that much different from humans. I wish they could both see that." A light knock coming upon the door, Jin couldn't help but hope whoever was there didn't hear any words he spared to Kurama. "Come in."

Norris peeked inside of the room before making his way inside nervously. "Jin, are you doing alright in here?" His eyes couldn't help but look at the large demon, which was obviously awake, on the bed. "God, it's big."

Kurama watched how nervous the young boy was about coming in any closer. "I promise I no bite," he said wearily in broken English.

"They talk!" Norris pointed out excitedly. "I thought you all talked in some gibberish to one another."

Kurama looked up at Jin with a shake of his head, realizing that humans hardly knew anything about the creatures they hunted and hated. "It is demonic. Some speak English but some not so good at it." Kurama motioned towards himself to make Norris understand he was one of them. The demon moved a part of his serpent body so that Norris could make it onto the bed without sitting on him. "I been learning. Nobody killed during that burning of the village?"

"There were a few deaths and more that were fatally wounded," Norris answered. He couldn't help but view the different colored greens scales on the snake demon nearby. "I've never seen one this up close before. I figured they would be more aggressive than this." He nervously placed his hand on Kurama's serpent half to feel of the scales.

"This one is injured," Kurama pointed out with a light chuckle. "I no reason to hurt you." He remembered the young farm girl that was brought into the building that he saw at the village looking hurt. "How is young girl? I saw her in house."

"Thane and Blythe are looking at her right now," said Jin with a somber sigh. "She was injured pretty bad. Whoever managed to get a hold of her really did her some harm."

Kurama smiled at Jin's words. He noted the feeling behind them, as he pushed himself upright on the bed slowly. "If you trust me, take me to her." His fingers touched Jin's shoulder. "I won't hurt her."

Knocking on Neda's bedroom door, Jin opened it slightly to find Blythe was tending to her sister while Thane stood by the bed guarding her. "Blythe, how is she doing?" He asked with worry from the doorway, making sure Kurama stayed hidden behind him.

"She is really weak," Blythe admitted quietly from where she was kneeling beside the bed. "She lost so much blood in that attack that I am not sure how we're going to be able to get her energy back." The young woman felt so frustrated over the fact that the snake demons nearly took her sister from her that tears began to well up in her eyes. "This isn't fair…"

"This may not be the best time, but this demon can help." Standing aside, Jin let Kurama come inside of the room only to witness as Thane threatened to pull his sword out in defense. "Thane, it is alright!" He assured the eager knight. "He can heal her. I promise!"

"If he makes **ONE** false move on her, I won't hesitate to cut his head off," Thane threatened, as he kept his hand upon his sword.

Kurama didn't feel as though speaking right away wouldn't be a wise idea, as he made his way slowly over towards Neda. "I won't hurt girl," Kurama promised finally in English. He ignored their shocked reaction, as he was used to it by now. Looking at the young woman, he moved in closer to listen to her weak heartbeat. "She is weak." Opening his palms, he slowly waved them over Neda's body to push forth the healing abilities he had.

Blythe looked over Kurama's shoulder to watch as some of the wounds on Neda healed up slowly under his abilities. "It is magic…!" She gasped, unable to believe he had such a skill. "How are you doing this!"

"Only I heal," Kurama remarked brokenly, continuing to seal up most of Neda's wounds before feeling weak himself. He supported himself on the side of the bed with a soft sigh. "That is what I do for now."

Jin was quick to grab Kurama under his arms to prevent him from passing out given the strength he exerted. "I've seen the things he can do. He is the only one who can heal when it comes to the clan he is apart of. He can attack with the earth, yes, but only in defense."

Thane looked between the two redheads before lowering his blade he had warned he would use on the serpent demon earlier. "I am to guess that those other two were part of the clan he was in."

Kurama closed his eyes tightly, ashamed to be reminded of that. He didn't want the two to attack to the village. He had tried to stop Hiei and Shishi, but it was too late. "They are. I sorry," he apologized brokenly in English. "I try to stop them, but I could not."

"They almost killed Neda!" Thane pointed out angrily with a wave of his fist to show his frustration in the matter. "All because one person decided to do something idiotic!"

"Maybe we learn from them?" Kurama suggested wisely. "One person or demon does not speak for all." He looked at Thane determined to get his words through. The knight finding no comeback to it, he watched as the man sighed his verbal defeat. Kurama turned to Jin and smiled softly. "I cannot stay long. My clan waits for me."

Jin hurried towards Kurama to stop him from leaving. "Kurama, you cannot leave yet. You are still hurt." Looking to Blythe and the others, he begged with his blue eyes. "He can stay here, right?" Jin knew this farm wasn't his in the least, even if he was dating Neda.

Blythe looked over to see Thane looking a bit resistant to the idea while Norris knew he didn't have a say in the matter. She folded her hands in front of her dress with a nod. "I don't see why not. He did save Neda and heal her injuries. I know no malicious snake demon would offer to do that."

Kurama placed his hands together before bowing respectfully towards her, as he too had come from the east. "Thank you."

"Kurama, I need to ask you about something," Jin insisted, nodding back towards the other bedroom. Looking to Norris, who appeared eager to go with them, he stopped the young man. "Alone. I won't be long. I promise."

Making it back to the other room to be in a private conversation, Kurama shook his head at Jin. "I know what it is you wish to ask of me, Jin, and as I promised, your children are fine." He had to admit that he was still in pain, causing the demon to slither back into the human bed. "There were three girls and two boys," he continued in explanation as to what kind he had.

"Do they ever ask what happened to their parents? Do they even know?" Jin asked in demonic, as he knew the demon found that language easier.

Kurama smiled at Jin's eagerness to learn about his children he hadn't seen in twelve years. "I tell them that their birth mother died from one of the men in iron and that their father was banished for a brave act, which the other demons didn't deem it so." He looked out the window from where Kurama found himself resting. "They really wish they could have gotten to know you and Silver. I tell them everyday what great demons you both were."

Jin bit his lower lip, attempting not to get emotional over wanting to see the children he had to leave behind. "I knew I did right in leaving them with you." Sitting down upon the edge of the bed, he sighed heavily. "I wish I could just see them."

"If it was within my power to do so, Jin, I would gladly let you see them," Kurama admitted honestly. "But if I were found out by any of the clan leaders, I would be voted into exile and have all my women and children stripped from me. And let's be honest, I don't trust those other leaders to take good care of my clan." He saw as Jin expressed further disappointment in the matter. "One of the boys almost looks exactly like you. The only difference is he has his mother's eyes and much longer hair and no horn."

Hearing Kurama say such a thing caused Jin to smile to himself in his attempts to imagine it. "I bet he's great," he whispered between them.

"I named him Jiro," Kurama said. "Sweetest boy and very protective of his siblings."

When silence consumed the room for a bit, Jin got back to his feet. "I better go make sure Neda is okay." He made his way to the door of the bedroom. "You should consider staying here. Nobody is going to hurt you here. When you're healed, you can head back to the clan."

"I appreciate it," Kurama said in demonic, softly before Jin left the room.

Neda was out cold for awhile. Regardless, Jin stayed in the bedroom upon a stool he dragged from downstairs to the room. He wanted to give her space to breathe and move, so he didn't get into the bed with her. Her body trembling, Neda moaned as she felt herself coming back to her form. Opening her eyes, she blinked them several times to try and focus where she was. "What…what happened to me…?"

"You passed out on the ride back here," Jin answered, nearly startling the young woman. "You were losing too much blood, and I was worried you wouldn't make it." He reached over to place his hand on top of Neda's. "Thanks to Kurama, we were able to heal you."

"Kurama…? Who is that? Is that a friend of yours?" Neda asked wearily.

Jin chuckled nervously while rubbing the back of his neck. "Well, kind of. He is wounded and using your parents' old bedroom. I hope that is okay."

"If he saved me, I have no problem with that," Neda answered with a smile to Jin. She squeezed the redhead's hand. "I was so happy when I saw you had come to rescue me. It was like you were my knight in shining armor." Knowing it sounded a bit cheesy, she couldn't help but look up at the ceiling. "I guess it is always nice to be the damsel in distress for once."

Jin couldn't help but chuckle lightly at her comment before reaching over to stroke her head. "I am glad I could be there for you, Neda." He couldn't help but keep remembering Kurama was in the other room and how Neda could possibly feel about a snake demon being in her parents' bedroom. "I hope you won't be too mad at me knowing who and what Kurama is, Neda."

Knowing that she didn't like the tone of his voice, she eyed Jin closely. "What…? What are you hiding?"

Getting to his feet slowly, he released her hand. "I'll be right back with him."

Neda watched as Jin left the room. She could hear him messing around beyond the door and talking to, possibly, the Kurama person he spoke of. The door opening, she found herself up against the wall, ignoring the pain that struck her body when she moved so quickly. "Jin, what is that thing doing here!" She exclaimed nervously, seeing the size of Kurama.

"Neda, please!" Jin begged, hurrying over to the bed to calm the woman down. "He isn't going to hurt you! If anything, he actually saved you from dying!"

"Jin, those things killed my parents!" Neda insisted, as she fought against Jin's desire to hold her still.

Kurama headed towards the woman cautiously. "You, not move," he advised best he could in English, almost struggling to remember some of the words. "If you move, cuts will open."

Neda was paralyzed with shock and fear, watching as the demon crawled closer to her. She felt her heart beating rapidly the closer Kurama got to her. The demon towering over her, she closed her eyes tightly, not desiring to see what he was going to do. "Please, go away…!" She begged, nearly in tears.

Smelling some of the blood on her body, Kurama focused the healing power within his palms before moving them not too far from her reopening wounds. He closed his eyes to focus on healing them back up best he could before pulling his hands away. His green eyes met with Neda's, when the young woman found it within herself to look his way. "You are healed now."

Finding that her pain was gone, she looked at the demon shocked. "What-how did demons get this kind of power? I didn't think many had any abilities."

"Overtime," Kurama answered simply with a smile. "What happened?" He was curious to know what had happened to get Neda in such bad shape.

"Some demon with lavender hair attacked me," Neda answered quietly, remembering back on that moment when Shishi appeared in front of her cart. She remembered being terrified when the creature looked at her so furiously before assaulting her. "He managed to pin me down, and I tried my best to get him off, but he was too strong. His nails ripped into my skin, but I guess I was lucky that whatever poison he could have given me didn't react."

"Nails only stun," Kurama answered, showing his. "Teeth poison. He stun you?"

Neda brought her knees to her chest, nodding. "I did eventually pass out. I thought maybe it was from fear. When I awoke, I found everything on fire in…black flames…I crawled to safety to be found by Jin."

Kurama sighed angrily, thinking back on the two alphas' decision to attack an innocent town. "I sorry for them," the redhead apologized on behalf of Hiei and Shishi's actions.

"An attack on their nest caused the other two to attack the town," Jin explained on Kurama's behalf, so his friend wouldn't have to struggle to remember the forbidden words he had learned from the human race. "Kurama went to stop them, but he got injured in the process and nearly killed. I asked Thane to take him back to the farm, and I am glad I did."

"I thought all snake demons were evil," Neda said, one-sidedly. She didn't wish to think that what she was brought up to believe was ever wrong. "I didn't even think they were capable of having a heart seeing as they'll kill other humans and even eat our livestock."

"We eat what is nearby," Kurama answered, as he carefully lounged on the empty space on the bed. "Animals locked up, easier than wild. We not mean harm."

"I mean, think about it," Jin insisted to Neda. "If you had to go out and hunt for your food or just use your neighbor's land to get their food, which would you do?"

"But that's called _**stealing**_," Neda emphasized. "That isn't right and is even a law in the human world. If you're caught stealing, you are to be killed on sight or have your hands cut from you depending on the severity of the crime."

"They don't mean any harm," sighed Jin, wanting Neda to see that the serpent race wasn't all that bad. "When someone is starving and in dire need of food, of course people are going to steal. It isn't like they feel good about it."

Kurama could tell Neda was resisting the idea of thinking snake demons were anything but thieves and evil. "Jin," he said simply to get the other redhead's attention. When the former demon looked to him, Kurama shook his head to prevent Jin from trying any harder to get Neda to understand. Leaning closer to his ear, the serpent whispered to the fellow redhead in demonic. "It isn't within them to understand us. We shouldn't force them to."

Jin nodded at Kurama's advice before turning back to Neda. "Kurama was sleeping in your parents' old bedroom, but I am sure you don't want that. Where did you want him to sleep?" Seeing Neda about to get snappy at the thought of the demon staying, Jin raised his hands to prevent her from speaking for the time being. "He won't be here long—just until he heals. Where did you want him to stay?"

Neda shook her head with her fingers running through her hair. "Just…let him stay where he was. I don't care."

Just as Kurama was about to turn and leave, he made his way back to Neda. "I have something." He reached into his long, flowing hair to pull out a simple rose. To express his thanks, he handed the rose over to Neda. He witnessed as she hesitantly reached out for it to accept. When her fingers held onto the flower, Kurama moved away from the bed. "Hope you like."

The farm woman wasn't sure what to say, as she ran her fingers over the delicate pedals. "Th-Thanks…" She found the gesture oddly sweet for a demon. Regardless, Neda still kept her defenses up when watching the redheads part from her bedroom.


	34. Chapter 34

When Neda found herself able to walk a little bit, once her energy was back, she made her way discreetly across the upper area of the house to the bedroom her parents owned. Quietly, she opened the door to find the large snake demon there, still recovering. Shutting the door behind her, she tiptoed in to get a better look. _I cannot believe he's so…big…_ Neda thought to herself.

Kurama had heard the door open earlier. His eyes opened slowly, he looked over his shoulder quickly to make sure Neda wasn't carrying anything to harm him with. "Mmm, it just you?" He asked in English.

"Y-Yeah, Jin doesn't know I am in here," Neda answered. She eyed the creature up and down, amazed at how big Kurama actually was. "You must be old to be this big. I was told by Lily that snake demons usually get bigger the older they are." She touched the scales only to move her hand quickly when the serpent half of the demon began to move under her palm.

"Some," Kurama answered, as he shifted about on the bed to get comfortable again. "I am 3,589 years old."

"How can you not get bored with so many years to live on?" Neda asked, making sure he didn't get too close to her. She was curious about him, but she was still edgy.

The redheaded demon smiled, as he looked over at the human woman from where he was resting on the pillow. "Simple: family," he stated basically. "We have big family. You watch babies grow to adults and watch over them. It take many, many years." He couldn't help but think about Jin and the obvious feelings he had in his speech dealing with Neda. "You have family?"

Neda turned towards the opposite wall to think about the family she had left. "Well, I have a big sister, if that's what you're asking. My sister is married to that knight who brought you here."

Kurama smiled tenderly. "What about Jin?"

Blushing brightly, Neda turned to look at the serpent demon. "That's rather personal, don't you think?"

"Per-son…al?" Kurama asked, a bit confused by the word.

"It means it is private," the young woman explained, still a bit annoyed by the question. "I do love Jin a lot, I suppose, but we haven't done anything but—." Realizing that the information she was about to indulge was personal as well she stopped herself. "I mean, umm, we _**express**_ that we love one another, if anything, but that is it."

Kurama knew what she was trying to say, so he didn't try to make her say more. "Ever have babies?" He asked curiously.

Neda hummed in thought about that question. "Well, I'd like to have a child, but Jin and I aren't even married yet." She saw Kurama give her a funny look after the word 'marry'. "Humans get married when they love each other. Usually it means they can start a family together."

"I think Jin would like," Kurama stated boldly on the former wind demon's behalf.

"Why do you talk about him like you know him so well?" Neda asked, moving her arms about in frustration at the nosey demon.

Kurama knew it wasn't wise to tell about Jin's past, as it was something Neda had to learn from the other demon's mouth. "That question for some day. But Jin lose five babies long ago. He miss them very much."

Neda felt horrible having to hear that news. "That's…that's terrible. I knew he had a wife, but I didn't know that they had so many kids together." Thinking about how she gave Jin such a hard time for not being around, Neda couldn't help but feel guilty for it. She figured the loss of a loved one was one thing, but to lose six people he loved must have been hard for the redhead.

"His babies still alive," Kurama explained from where he was lying on the bed. "Jin cannot see them. It long story." He moved cautiously closer to Neda, knowing she didn't want him too close. "Demons kill your parents? I hear you say it."

"When I was twelve," said Neda, as she looked back at the demon's body. She nervously reached over to place her fingertips back onto his serpent half. "Our barn caught on fire, and my sister and I saw them running from the scene. One stayed behind to finish off my mother."

Kurama wasn't told fully the story involving Jin, but he knew bits and pieces of it from when they first met. He hummed in thought over the situation. "Sometimes, things not always as they seem. Sometimes, we see what we want."

Before Neda could respond back to that comment, the door opened to reveal Jin there looking rather shocked by the fact Neda was willfully talking to Kurama. "Well, I didn't expect to find you in here." Jin shut the door behind him with a plate full of food on it. He managed to pick up some cooking tips from not only Lily in the past but Neda as well. Jin placed the plate down on the nightstand closest to Kurama's side of the bed he was resting on. "How are things going here?"

Neda shrugged, bringing her hands back to herself. "Things are going alright, I suppose." She eyed the cooked chicken and bacon on the plate that Jin carried. "Glad to see you didn't bring an entire pig and chicken up here for him." Her bitterness could be heard on her words, causing the other two to flinch from it.

"Kurama has never had cooked foods, so I am sure he'll find this just as good if not better than that," Jin insisted. He reached over to help Kurama onto his back best he could without hurting him any further. "So, how have things been going on here?"

"We talk," Kurama answered on Neda's behalf. His green eyes falling upon the food Jin brought, he cocked his brow, as he had never seen cooked foods a good many times. He always did his best to stray from human villages in fear of causing problems. "What food is this?"

"This is what chickens and pigs look like when they are cooked," Jin explained, as he brought the plate closer to Kurama to let him take what he wanted. "Just be careful, it is hot."

Kurama sniffed the food before taking the plate to himself to try it himself. "Not much blood," He admitted, after trying a piece of the bacon. It was much better than what he usually caught for himself and his nest. As he was eating, he couldn't help but notice Neda was lost within her own thoughts and appearing rather irritable. "Jin, I be fine here," said Kurama finally, putting down a piece of chicken he was pulling from the bone. "You and Neda can talk somewhere."

"If you need anything, just let me know," Jin said, as he parted from Kurama's side. Looking to Neda, he nodded towards the door. "We might as well give him some space. Besides, you need food and sleep as well." As he escorted Neda back to her bedroom, he found her to be eerily quiet. He was a bit worried what the two could have discussed when he was downstairs. Jin pulled the covers back to help the woman get comfortable in her bed. "So what would you like to eat? I still have some eggs and bacon down there. I hope you don't mind that I cooked most of the chicken for Kurama. He just eats meat like I do."

"I am fine with that," Neda answered softly. She couldn't help but think back on the family that Jin had to leave behind somehow. "You never told me that you had children."

Hearing that made Jin's heart sink in having to remember them as well. "Oh," he chuckled nervously. "Did Kurama tell you all that?"

"I don't know how he knows that, but he did tell me. Why didn't _**you**_ tell me?" Neda demanded to know. She was intent to get the truth from Jin.

"I just didn't think it was needed in any conversation," Jin admitted with a shrug. "Besides, it is a difficult thing to talk about." Thinking he was done, he excused himself from the stool he was sitting on to head back downstairs to continue cooking.

"But it is something to discuss!" Neda insisted right as Jin made it to the bedroom door to prevent him from leaving. "Jin, you've been here for almost a year, and I just am now realizing that I don't know a thing about you! Why? Why do you keep hiding things from me?"

Jin turned around hesitantly with a serious frown on his face. "I am sorry," he apologized, "but some of these lies I feel are needed for the time being. Maybe in due time I can tell you everything, but I cannot right now." Thinking about his children he had to leave behind after Silver's death, he sighed through his nostrils. "When Silver died, it was Kurama who cut her open to give me my children. I only got to hold one of them before I told him to take them and raise them as his own."

"You're letting a snake demon raise your children?" Neda asked in disbelief. "Why don't you just take them back from him?"

"Because, they are not mine any longer," Jin said quietly, lowering his head in shame at having to admit that aloud. "Kurama has told me they want to see me, but after everything I have done leading up to their mother's death, I don't think I could have the courage to see them just yet." Not wanting anymore personal questions handed to him, Jin left the room to head downstairs to finish breakfast for everyone in the house.

Neda covered her face with her hands, not able to make sense of anything that was being told her from Jin and Kurama both. Even if the answer was as clear as day, her mind never stumbled upon or refused to do so not wishing to believe such a thing.

When Jin managed to finish food for Neda, he dropped it off before heading back outside of her bedroom to stand and stare at the door leading to the room Kurama was in. With so many emotions racing through him, he wasn't sure what he wanted to do first. He wasn't able to hold any of it back by the time he opened the door to let himself in a few moments later. "Kurama, we have to talk," he growled in demonic.

Kurama was sleeping when Jin came charging into the bedroom. He didn't wake right away, as he felt secure by that point. However, he could hear Jin stomping around the room irritably with his eyes closed. "What is the matter, Jin?" He responded wearily in their cursed tongue.

"You told Neda about my children," Jin grumbled, as he crawled onto the bedside. He noticed that Kurama still had his eyes closed, but that wasn't going to stop him. "Why would you do that! She's not supposed to know who and what I am!"

"How does that reveal anything?" Kurama yawned, opening one eye to look at the fellow redhead. "I just told her that you had five babies, and you were separated from them. What you say to follow up on that is your own affair."

"I had to tell her that you have them, and she thinks I am human!" Jin exclaimed angrily between them. He knew if Kurama weren't injured, nothing would have stopped him from attacking the demon. "How does a snake demon raising five human babies sound to you?"

Kurama hummed in thought before shifting positions once more on the bed he wasn't used to. "Jin, I am no expert, but I do believe Suzuka gave you a time limit on being human. A year, you said, right?" He caught Jin nod in his weary haze. "Eventually, you'll turn into a demon again, and you either have to show her who and what you really are, or you can choose to run away to leave her heartbroken over the event. From what she has told me, she has already suffered the loss of her parents." Kurama paused, witnessing as Jin appeared to be backing down. "Do you really want her to suffer through that?"

Jin gave up his verbal assault on Kurama, causing him to relax on the bed as well. "I hate when you're right. You can be just as annoyingly right as Touya sometimes."

"How is he by the way?" Kurama asked off of the primary topic they were on.

"He is around," Jin answered, resting his head on the bed to give himself a breather. "Touya comes by the farm every now and again to check on things. Ever since Lily died, he's been a bit nervous with me not having anyone to talk to about being a demon."

Kurama smiled, closing his eyes once more. "Good to know he's doing well. I think in day or two, I should be able to leave."

"Should you leave before I get the chance to say goodbye, make sure to tell my children that I love them," Jin insisted before pulling himself from the bed to make it to his feet. "Thanks once again, Kurama." He headed back out into the U-shaped hallway to make it over to Neda's bedroom to be sure she was alright next. Opening the door, he found her asleep as well. Smiling his relief, he made his way back over to the stool he was sitting upon earlier. He reached over to stroke her head gently to help her continue sleeping.

Neda moaned slightly, feeling Jin touching her. Turning her body to face him, she opened her eyes slowly. "Did you ever consider starting another family?" Neda asked groggily. She was still very tired from the attack that happened a day ago.

"Sometimes," said Jin with a brief smile at the thought. He brought his hand back down to his lap to think about it. "I guess losing another family was just too difficult to handle."

"You never told me why you left the east and the family you had there," Neda pointed out, as she held the pillow close to her cheek. "What happened to them?"

Jin rubbed the back of his neck while his eyes wandered about, not sure how to answer that properly. "Umm, it is a long story," he said nervously. "I was pretty much used to make babies more than anything or open women when I was in the east. I took in some of the women as my own only to have my brother tear me away from them. I left behind the women I loved, as well as many children I would have hoped to have known better."

"You were used to make…babies…?" Neda found that a bit horrible. "You could have bred yourself to death if you weren't careful!"

"My body can handle it," Jin promised with a slight stretch. "I guess I should head downstairs to catch up on some sleep myself." He wasn't terribly tired, but Jin found that around the farm, there wasn't much for him to do. Just as he was about to turn away, he felt Neda grab him by the wrist. "What is it?"

"Did you not once ever considering making another family…with me?" Neda was curious to know his response. She had always wanted to start her own family, and she knew she wasn't getting much younger. "I want to know that I am with the right person when it comes to who is making love to me."

Jin sat back down on the stool before leaning over to kiss Neda on the lips tenderly. "I wasn't aware that you wanted to have a child. You never showed any signs to that desire." He smiled before threatening to pull away again. "I would help you with that, but you are weak after that attack on the town. I couldn't afford to drain you further."

Neda grabbed onto Jin's shirt to pull him back towards herself. "If I didn't think I could handle it, I wouldn't have brought it up." With Jin soon nearby her on the bed, she held the redhead close to her. "I just hope you're ready for this as well."

"If I didn't want to do this, I would have objected as soon as you said something," said Jin, as he pulled her nightgown up and over her head to get at her bare body better before removing his own shirt. "I will do my best to help with your desires," he whispered against her neck before kissing the flesh lovingly.

* * *

With summer soon upon them, Jin couldn't help but feel really anxious knowing that his time was almost up. He accompanied Neda to the market town with his mind drifting about in ways to explain himself before he knew it was too late. While his mind was wandering, he caught the conversation between a seller and a buyer not too far away from him. Amongst their words, he could hear them talking down on the naga race, making him cringe angrily. _It is irritating enough that the whole world is blind_, he thought to himself.

"Jin?" Neda called, shaking the redhead's arm gently. "Are you feeling alright?" She looked into Jin's blue eyes. "You looked like you were really focused on something."

"Don't worry about it," Jin insisted, as they continued their shopping for the day. "It isn't anything important. What about yourself? You're the one who has been sick for the past few suns."

"Your past wives must have not thrown up when they are pregnant," said Neda. She had been sick for awhile ever since the two had been trying to have a baby together. When Jin got worried she was dying, she had to explain it was normal for someone who was expecting a baby. It threw Jin for a loop, but he was happy he would actually have a child he could possibly enjoy if the potion didn't take that from him. "The doctor said the sicker I am, the healthier the baby will be. So I guess I should count my blessings in some ways."

Jin looked at some of the seeds for sell, trying to find the ones that would grow best in the summer season for Neda. "I am afraid that my last wives never did have this sickness," he explained while shifting through the merchandise in front of him. "It makes me feel bad that you're so sick and miserable sometimes." Jin had learned what 'miserable' finally meant for the past, several weeks. "I am used to the gaining weight, though. At least I was prepared for that."

"I wish you'd reconsider the marriage choice," Neda admitted, as she held his hand tightly, leaning against the redhead. "I don't know why you don't want to consider it. It is normal for people to get married before having a baby." She knew she was already seven months along, so it was already obvious she was pregnant. Her sister and brother-in-law wouldn't let her live it down that Neda wasn't married to Jin.

"I am afraid there is a reason for that," Jin admitted nervously, as he held her hand tightly within his own. "Maybe when the King's ball comes up, I can tell you then. It seems like the perfect time to do so."

Neda sighed at Jin's determination to avoid the thought. "I just hope you're not going to leave me for someone else. You're not going to…are you?" She couldn't help but feel fearful of that thought every day she spent with Jin.

Jin stopped window-shopping to turn around and hold Neda's cheeks gently. "I would never do that. I promised you I wouldn't the moment we spent time with one another." He kissed her upon the forehead with a smile. "Just remember that, Neda."

"I guess with the ball coming up, I should find something nice to wear." Neda came across a booth not too far away that sold a majority of clothing and sewing materials. "I never was good at sewing. I really wish I could have learned from Blythe when I had the chance. Then I could have made my dream dress."

"Why don't you ask her to make your dream dress for you?" Jin suggested, as he took looked through some of the clothes just to admire the assortment.

"She is probably working on her own at the moment." Neda put down the fabric she was eyeing to continue looking through the many stands for something that would suffice for her. "Thane got invited by the King being he serves him, so Blythe gets to go as well."

Jin looked at one of the male attires finding it too much for him to ever consider wearing. "I thought everyone got invited to it. At least that's what I gathered from Norris."

"Sometimes they do and sometimes they don't. I think he's being selective this year." Neda pulled a white dress from in front of her to hold up to her body to see if it would fit should she try it on. "What do you think? Do you think this one will do it?"

Jin eyed the white train dress that had flared, long sleeves and fabric stitched across the chest. It had blue embroidery, which matched the soft blue fabric that took up much of the front of the dress. "I think you'll look beautiful in that," he admitted honestly. "I don't think I'll bother with anything special. I may look fine in the clothes I have back at the house."

"If you insist. I am sure whatever you decide to do, you'll look great." Neda looked to the sky to find the position of the sun to judge the time of the day. "We should probably get back home. It looks like it is getting late." She placed down her money on the table to buy the dress she had in mind to wear to the ball.

Jin agreed, as he didn't like the thought of Neda walking around so much being pregnant. "Let's get Rose and head back home." Holding her hand within his own, he made his way towards the barn, so they could fetch the black mare and head back to the farm.

Jin stayed up a bit that night to look through a few books kept around the house while Neda slept in her parents' old bedroom. Ever since the two of them had been sleeping together, they moved rooms seeing as the bed was bigger that Damon and Pearl used. He didn't feel like going to sleep right away, as he was feeling anxious when it came to the coming ball. "I've got to tell her sometime soon…" he mumbled to himself, tossing aside a book he held.

A knock coming from the door that night, Jin looked to it a bit nervous. He wasn't expecting anybody, and he knew Neda wouldn't have fallen asleep if she were. Making it to the door, he leaned against it to try and hear what was on the other side. "Who is there?" Jin asked.

"Just open the door, you fool," a familiar voice demanded from the other side.

Jin opened the door, a bit startled to find Suzuka standing on the porch. "S-Suzuka? What are you doing here?" He asked, letting the wizard inside of the farmhouse.

"I am just stopping by to give a warning," said Suzuka, as he looked about the quaint building. He headed over to the dinning room table to look at the bread sitting in the center to take a small piece. "Tomorrow, upon midnight, the potion is going to wear off. Whatever you took it for, you better hope you've completed it."

"T-Tomorrow? But that's the night of the King's ball!" Jin exclaimed, unable to believe he hadn't much time left.

Suzuka turned around while putting some of the bread within his mouth with an added shrug. "That's not my problem. I held up my part of the arrangement, so it doesn't matter to me whether you've completed what you needed to do or not."

Jin knew that he couldn't afford to turn into a demon after a special event; especially if Neda was to have a baby soon. "What if you made me another potion? I could have enough time to get what I needed done!"

"If I do such a thing, there is a high chance your body could shut down from being forced to process things in a different form for two years," Suzuka grumbled, as he leaned against the table behind him. "I told you, I haven't perfected the potion yet. It has side affects if used back to back and it doesn't last long." He wiped his hands of the breadcrumbs by rubbing his palms together before heading to the front door once more. "Just be warned that you don't have long. You have that one day to make things right. Good luck on that, demon."

The door shut behind the wizard, Jin jolted slightly from it closing. Taking in a deep breath, he wasn't able to believe he would have so little time to explain to Neda what he was. She still had resentment to demons, and he wasn't able to sway her. Covering his face with his palms, Jin slid down to the floor to think of what to do.


	35. Chapter 35

Neda had headed to Blythe's house to try and get ready for the ball that would be happening that evening. She had her elder sister work on her hair after Neda had put on her dress. "I am still worried about why he won't marry me," the young woman sighed. "I try not to bring it up often, but I do think about it."

Blythe smiled to herself, as she continued to run the brush through her sister's hair gently. "I am sure he has a reason, but I don't doubt one bit that he loves you. If he didn't, he wouldn't have been around as much as he has. Now, do you want your hair up or down?" She moved Neda's hair up and down to let the girl decide.

"I think halfway up might do," Neda said with a chuckle, looking up at her sister.

Jin already put on what clothing he had desired to wear. It was a simple white, short-sleeve shirt and baggy, brown pants with boots. He wasn't about to put on anything that shined. He had combed his wild, red hair thinking that he looked good enough as he was. He was waiting eagerly for everyone downstairs in the living room that they had. When the floorboards began to moan, Jin looked up at the stairs to see Thane arriving in his armor. He wore everything but his helmet. "You wear…armor to the ball?" Jin asked. He was a bit nervous over the thought of a knight being in battle gear should he transform in front of him.

"Knights, to prove that they work under the King, must wear their armor. But I am not going there with my helmet or weapon. The palace guards have theirs, though," Thane explained. He grabbed an apple from the basket in the center of their table before pointing at Jin and what he was wearing. "Are you really going dressed like that?"

Jin looked down about the clothes he was wearing. "I am sorry, but I feel most comfortable in this than those fancy clothes I saw for sell."

"You could at least do something with your hair." Thane finished a majority of the apple before tossing it in the wastebasket. "I guess it is naturally wild like this?" He asked, touching parts of it to watch it just fall back in place should he do anything with it. "Come with me." The knight nodded over towards the mirror that they had in that part of the house. "I can probably do something with this."

He watched as Thane combed some of his hair back to put into a ponytail that he could keep out of his face for the most part. "I just hope the dance lessons paid off when it came to Blythe teaching me." Jin was still nervous about getting on the ballroom floor and possibly making a fool of himself. He had asked Blythe to help him, knowing that Nash wouldn't bother with him. The winter elf was already irritated at the redhead for taking Neda from him.

"You should do fine. There isn't much to it," said Thane, as he finished with Jin's hair. "There, that looks a bit better."

Jin still had some of his wild hair up front to help frame his face. He was fixing some bits of the wild tresses before hearing the door upstairs open and close to signal that the girls were coming down finally. Turning around, he watched as Blythe made it down first. She was wearing a purple and white dress that looked similar in design to Neda's. Her reddish, brown hair was down and wavy, given how the strands were so used to being braided. He watched as Thane headed over towards his wife to compliment her before eyeing the stairs once more to catch Neda. She was wearing the same dress she had picked out yesterday and a pair of dangling earrings, which glistened off of any light source. Her hair was halfway up in a bun to keep from her face, while the rest of it rested down her back in a few curls. The former demon smiled, reaching out to take her white, gloved hands. "You look beautiful," he complimented, almost struggling to find the right words.

Neda bowed her head slightly in embarrassment at his kind words. "Thank you," she whispered between them. "You look rather handsome yourself."

"I didn't do much," Jin pointed out with a light chuckle. "I just wasn't about to wear something so flashy to a celebration."

"I am not saying that it was a bad thing." Neda held the redhead close in a tight embrace.

"I think we are all ready for the celebration, then," said Blythe, holding onto her dress to keep it out of the way of her shoes. "Let's be on our way. The castle isn't too far from here by foot." She accepted Thane's hand into her own before parting from the house.

Jin watched the two leave before offering his hand to Neda. "I guess this is a better time than any."

Neda accepted his hand and headed out after her sister and brother-in-law. She couldn't help but notice that Jin was acting rather nervous. "Is something wrong? I can sense you're trembling a bit."

He didn't want to admit that he was thinking about the midnight expiration on the potion he had consumed a year ago. Trying to brush it off, he smiled down at Neda with a shake of his head. "No, I am sure it is just the coming chill in the night air. Don't worry about me." When Neda turned her attention from Jin, he couldn't help but focus on the dairy he had brought with him. He was hoping he could find a moment to pull her off to the side to give the warn diary to her to read.

The dirt road led up to a rather large iron gate, which was guarded by two knights. Thane went up to the knights to express he was there for the party to have the man in iron open up the passage for them. Everyone walking through, they followed the road further up to where the castle was resting up the hill. The palace was beautiful so up close. It was completely white and every light in every window lit up the coming darkness. The commotion from inside of the castle got louder the closer they got to the entrance to the palace itself.

"Wow," Jin stated between him and Neda, "this place looks beautiful!" As they got further inside, he watched as the corridor opened up to a huge ballroom filled with many people already. There were minstrels playing a charming melody in the back with many tables lined with food that were closest to the walls. Jin tried to look all the way up to how far the ceiling went, but he found himself about to fall over just by doing so.

"I must admit, I have never been here before," gasped Neda as well, enjoying what was before her. "My family was never invited often, and if we were, we just couldn't have everyone go, so my parents usually went."

Jin walked by one of the tables to look at the assortment of foods, finding some he had never seen before. "They have quite the choice in foods here." He grabbed one of the shrimp nearby to toss it quickly into his mouth just to taste it.

"Still eager to eat as always, aren't you, Jin?" Nash's voiced commented rudely from in front of them. He had caught the redhead sneaking food.

"Hello, Nash," he mumbled, trying not to show his hatred in the winter elf all too soon given where they were. "I guess you were invited? I didn't expect an elf to be called to such a thing."

"When you live in Eytheria long enough, you get recognized as a citizen," Nash explained just as bitterly back to Jin. He shifted his attention to Neda and smiled at the woman. "It is a pleasure to see you around here, Neda."

Neda could feel the tension between the two, and it was making her a bit nervous about even being brought into it. "Hello, Nash." She curtsied quickly before holding back onto Jin's arm. "It is good to see you about. It has been awhile."

Ever since Jin had moved into Neda's house and the two had been working to start a family, Nash had never found a reason to return back to Eytheria as often, except for work he often picked up in the castle town. "For good reason," he stated, looking over at Jin. "Well, let me know if you ever have a moment to spare. I will be amongst the crowd."

Jin let Nash nudge his way past before looking to Neda. "That went well, as usual." He guided the young woman about the ballroom to continue looking at all there was to see. "Sorry that I caused him to be at odds with me."

"I am not too worried about him," Neda expressed honestly. "What he wants to gripe about is his own affair." Watching all of the couples dancing on the ballroom floor, she couldn't help but want to join them. Tugging on Jin's arm, she nodded towards the open floor. "Care to join me? I know you've been practicing with my sister for the past few weeks."

"Well, we shall see how I do," Jin said nervously, taking her hands to make it out onto the ballroom floor. Holding her appropriately, he began to lead the young woman about on the floor as Blythe taught him to do. "It is a bit different from anything I have done before."

"You don't like it?" Neda questioned with a tilt of her head, as she glided about, following Jin's lead.

"It is alright," said Jin with a shrug of his shoulders. "I just preferred singing or playing the flute. It is two of my favorite things to do." He made sure not to do anything drastic as far as dancing, because he wanted to make sure she and the baby would be alright. "Dancing is fun, but I don't know if I could get used to it no matter how often I try it."

"Well, I think you do a wonderful job," Neda complimented, as she continued to follow his lead.

The more he danced with her, the more Jin couldn't help but realize that his time would be up soon. Often, he would glance over at the clock within the castle just to see what time it was. When the music did stop, Jin brought her hands close to his chest. "Neda, there is something I need to tell you."

She had to admit to herself that she didn't like the tone of his voice when he spoke. Neda gripped onto his hands tightly. "What is it?"

As Jin was about to try his best to explain, he was stopped by the sound of trumpets going off to announce the arrival of the king and princess. Turning around to watch the two make their appearance, he saw the king had a white beard and hair to match with a flowing cape that was red and white and crimson attire. The princess had long, flowing blond hair with a tiara, which was litter with jewels, upon her head. Her dress was the most silky and magnificent thing that Jin had ever seen on a human. It was aqua and white in color.

"So that is King Alexander and Princess Demelza," Jin gasped at finally seeing them. "I have never seen them before."

"Nor have I, to be honest." Neda eyed the princess up and down and couldn't help but feel a bit inferior to how she appeared. "She sure is beautiful…"

Jin turned to Neda to smile tenderly. "So are you. You could have made the perfect princess if you were born into royalty." He didn't feel like listening to the king's speech, as he knew he had other things he had to talk about with Neda. Pulling her from the ballroom, he made it out to a nearby balcony. Jin wanted privacy in what he was about to say to Neda. "I am afraid I don't have much time to tell you all of this."

"What is wrong, Jin? You've been nervous about something ever since we made it here. I can tell." Neda held onto Jin's hands tightly within her own. "You're not going to leave me…are you?"

"No, no, it isn't that. I mean, I don't have to leave you if you don't want me to," Jin explained best he could. "I am afraid that I have a secret that I have been hiding since the day we met, and I was waiting for the right moment to tell you about it." He knew he had Neda's full attention when he mentioned the secret. "I just want you to know that, I—."

"There you two are!" Norris interrupted, spying Jin and Neda out on the balcony. He was oblivious to the fact he was intruding on a conversation between them. "I have been looking for you guys everywhere. This palace is bigger than I thought it was!"

"Norris, we're kind of in the middle of something," Jin expressed seriously, not wanting there to be any more interruptions.

"Well, normally I wouldn't intrude, but I was asked to find Neda on Blythe's behalf," Norris insisted, looking over at the woman. "Your sister wanted to talk to you about something. She promises it won't be long."

Neda nervously pulled from Jin with a brief smile. "I will be right back. I am sorry, Jin." She spared the former demon a kiss on the lips before heading back inside to find her sister.

Jin sighed a bit, watching Neda leave before catching the time on the clock. He had one more hour before it was to be too late for him to say anything. Growling at the timing, he rested against the balcony railing. "I am not going to be able to tell her in time. This is a lost cause."

"What is wrong, Jin?" Norris asked, joining the redhead at the balcony railing. "Are you okay? I have never seen you this stressed out before."

"I have a secret I have to tell Neda before the day is over," Jin explained, looking back over at the clock. "And if I don't get it out soon…I may lose her forever. Hell, even if I tell her, I may lose her still. I don't know."

Norris wasn't sure what Jin was talking about. There were so many thoughts running through his mind that involved any secret that Jin could be hiding. "I guess it must be a tough secret to tell." He placed his hand on Jin's shoulder in attempts to reassure the man once more. "I think you just have to remind yourself that, no matter what, your friends and even the woman you love, will still care for you after you tell it."

Jin exhaled heavily with an attempt to let out all his frustrations through it. "I do suppose." He looked over at Norris with a nod. "Thank you. I just hope you're right with all things considered."

When Neda finished speaking with her sister several moments later, she went searching for Jin to find him at the balcony still with Norris. She had to admit, given the secret he was about to tell her, she was still nervous about going out to meet the redhead. _I guess I have to face him sooner or later_, Neda thought to himself. Folding her hands in front of her, she made her way back out to the balcony. "Sorry about that, Jin. My sister was just asking if we wanted to spend the night at her place. I told her that would be alright."

Jin couldn't help but remind himself he would be a demon by then. He didn't feel as though getting too excited would mean anything. "That sounds like a plan," he expressed almost dully.

Norris looked between the two, hating that they both appeared down on such a wonderful night. "Ugh, for heaven's sake, Jin, go out there and dance with the girl!" He demanded, pushing the redhead towards Neda when the music started back up again. "When people dance, a secret can usually be told there, as you do dance close together."

Neda blushed at having Jin so close to her again. Looking up at him, she managed a smile upon her face. "Shall we? I know you don't like dancing, but maybe Norris is right. It might be a better way to explain things as a dance is something between two people."

"Neda, I am afraid I don't have long," Jin expressed, as they continued their dance on the marble flooring. "But I have been about your farm longer than you realize. I was even there the night your parents got killed." He knew he had to get it out quickly before the third chime on midnight.

"What…what are you talking about?" Neda asked, unable to find the words just right. "That's impossible! You couldn't have been there!"

"But I was there, and I held Pearl when she died," Jin explained, only to be interrupted by the first chime of the midnight stroke. He turned to the clock, shaking his head at the time finally being up. He felt Neda pulling away from him when Jin gazed back at the confused farm girl. "Neda, I am sorry. But I wasn't meaning harm that night. I was doing what your mother asked the moment she died!" Hearing the second chime, he couldn't help but feel sick to his stomach.

"No…it can't be…!" Neda exclaimed, as she backed away from the redhead.

"Neda, I am so sorry…!" Jin managed to get out before the third chime of the clock bellowed about the ballroom. Grabbing onto his head, he felt his body changing back into the serpent demon form he was given at birth. His clothes ripping from his body as he changed in appearance and size, he could hear everyone around him screaming at the fact he was actually a demon. When he felt he was back to normal, Jin looked up at the frightened Neda. He had never seen her so scared before. He reached out to her desperately. "Neda…please…!"

"_**You**_…I cannot believe it is you! You lied to me!" Neda had never felt so betrayed as well as frightened for her own life at seeing the demon there before her. "You killed my parents! There is no excuse for that! Nothing you could say or do would excuse you from what crime you did!"

Realizing that everyone in the ballroom wanted him dead, Jin knew he couldn't be around much longer. Without having anything else to say at that moment, Jin hurried out of the castle as quickly as he could. Once he made it outside, he heard someone calling his name. He found Touya to be hiding in the bushes not too far away from the gate. "Touya, you're here!" He said with relief.

"We don't have much time!" Touya insisted, grabbing Jin's wrist to pull him away from the mob of people who wanted him dead. "We have to get you out of here and back to the nest!"

Neda remained within the palace, dumbfounded by what had all just come crashing down around her. As the king was trying to calm everyone over the incident, she looked down at where Jin was last standing to find a book with worn, leather binding. Picking it up, she noted the word 'Diary' on it. Holding it close to her chest, she decided to take it back to the house with her.

Thane and Blythe allowed Neda back to their house for the coming hours. Everyone was in too much shock to really sleep, however. With so many thoughts racing through his mind, the knight didn't bother chasing after the redhead. Inside, he knew Jin was kind and gentle, but he was always brought up to believe that the naga were evil, malicious creatures that killed others for their own personal game. Hearing Blythe heading down the stairs, he looked over his shoulder from where he was standing at a nearby window to watch everyone try to pass off what had happened at the ball. "How is she doing?"

"She is really upset," Blythe answered, as she made it over towards her husband. Resting her cheek against his back, she closed her eyes unable to believe what she had seen. "I don't want to imagine that a demon can easily march around as a human for a full year. That's too much to consider."

"I know who he is," Thane said off topic. "I remember those eyes of his. They have haunted my dreams ever since that attack on the snake nest in Kalrune Village's old graveyard. I think he was there. And his wife…his wife was that demon one of the knights killed with an arrow to the chest."

"Do you think he was trying to get revenge for it!" Blythe exclaimed quietly between them in worry.

Thane shook his head honestly, "No. Within the short amount of time I got to know him, I don't think he was looking for trouble." He moved the curtains on the window to watch the frightened people outside a bit better. "I think he was being honest when he said he was trying to watch over you and your sister."

Blythe shook her head, as she made her way over towards the sofa in the living room area. "That's impossible. Why would our mother beg that of him? He started the barn fire!"

"I think tonight we have learned that not everything is as it appears to be," Thane explained, as he walked over to join his wife. "Maybe that night didn't happen as you think it did. I am sure there is a reason he continued to follow you and your sister around in the shadows." He was silent, thinking about Lily for that moment. "Maybe Lily herself even knew who and what he was before any of us did. She is blind, and she trusted him with her life."

"Maybe…Neda told me that Lily really loved him, and Jin really loved her," Blythe said, remember a letter she received from Neda once. "But she said that a fish cannot marry a bird unless the Goddess grants it wings. She found that to be an odd saying, and, I must admit, I did too. Maybe she did know. She was a demon hugger after all."

Neda could hear the two conversing downstairs, making her remember the diary that the redhead had left behind. She had hidden it under her pillow to keep it from anyone taking it from her. Pulling the worn book out into the moonlight, she opened to the first page to find a note there addressed to her.

_Dear Neda:_

_If you are reading this, it means I have failed to tell you in time. Forgive me, but I just didn't know how to. I hope you will continue to love me always regardless of what you read in these pages and how things happened._

_Love,_

_Jin_

Quickly, she shifted through the pages to find the one detailing her parents' death. She wanted to know what happened that day through his eyes.

* * *

Once back home at the farm, Neda eventually closed the diary that the naga dropped the night before. She didn't know what to think even if he had flattered her several times in the many pages he bothered to write upon. The last part really tore at her involving the party at the palace, but she couldn't control her emotions towards Jin's sudden outward change. He had written in the last page that he would come back again to see her, so Neda knew she would have a chance to see the naga once more even though it would be hard.

She pushed the covers off of her and headed out of the bedroom and down the stairs to the kitchen so she could walk out on the terrace. Feeling the chill in the air attack her softly, Neda embraced her body as her ankle length nightgown whipped about from the wind caressing it. She gazed out at the barn not too far away with a soft and yet eager filled sigh as she waited for the naga to reappear knowing if anything, he would want his diary back that he dropped when chased away from her side. All was quiet for some time until the naga announced quietly his arrival.

"Neda," Jin called quietly from the stairs to the farmer girl's left.

Spooking from the sound of his soft tone, Neda jumped back as she kept the worn diary within her embrace. His crimson red scales that were more visible than the cherry underbelly glistened a bit from the light of the full moon once touched and almost made the beast seem as if he were bleeding. It was tempting to want to touch his scaly body, but with all the stories she had been told as a child growing up when it came to the monsters just beyond the house, she couldn't help but feel fear rise up within her. "What do you want?" She asked almost defensively.

"I came back for my diary, which you obviously have," Jin remarked pointing to the book within her embrace, "and to speak with you once more, because I want you to hear me out."

Neda sniffed back her tears of anger since this was the man she had come to love for the year he was allowed to remain a human man and to find out he was nothing but a lying naga was more than enough to make her world seem to crumble. "You wanted to eat me…" she seemed to mumble almost randomly.

Jin blinked several times, confused at what she said, "I wanted to—eat you? I never wanted to eat you, Neda, I love you!"

"Liar!" Neda growled, throwing the diary at him only to have it miss and slide up beside Jin's large reptilian body.

Looking at his diary that was closest to his tail Jin picked it up with that appendage to open up the page she marked with a piece of fabric to find the section she meant. Seeing that it was the segment he wrote about when they first made love, he couldn't help but chuckle a bit at what she must have gotten out of what he wrote.

"You find this funny?" Neda asked, trying to control her emotions.

Jin moistened his lips a moment, regaining his composure so he could recite what she had bookmarked, "Her human body was much unlike my own kind and in a way that made it all the more special. The feel of her touching me and me touching her, it took all the strength I had not to lose control of myself and harm her. To feel the human warmth of her body caressing every part of my being when I entered inside of her for the first time was heaven itself. I found myself clawing at the covers beneath us and tearing at them from the new feeling that attacked me, and it nearly forced me to become quite harsh with her frame. It was a new experience and though wonderful the more I dwell on it, scary for me at that time and how I would respond considering the naga inside of me. Even the smell of her virgin blood drove me a bit crazy once I managed to make it seep from her body. I must admit a part of me wanted to taste it just once, but I feared what that would do to me and how she would react. However, I just wanted to taste every part of the body I had admired from afar. And I did and I will never forget this day, this hour, this time that felt as if it lasted for eternally."

Looking back at Neda with a sort of mocking smile, he closed his diary before taking it from his tail to place within his arms wondering what she had misread since it was all clear to him. "You thought I wanted to eat you because of me unable to control myself? To the contrary," Jin assured with a bit of a laugh. "I was admiring your human body, Neda. I feared going too far for it both being our first time to where I would harm you physically as in accidentally tearing at your skin with my nails or going beyond the limit when it came to my endowed size and the width and depth of your body. I didn't mean that one thing would lead to another and I would devour you."

Neda couldn't help but look off to the side, feeling a bit embarrassed at the moment, not noticing that the naga was inching a bit closer to her. "I—I feared you had come to seduce me and then eat me…"

"Why?" Jin asked, finally right in front of her as he stayed upon his scaly length. Seeing that she was about to bolt with him so close to her, prompted Jin to grab gently onto her wrist with his tail to make her stay put so they could speak, "Because I am a demon? I think your kind has done a number on you and your people when it comes to us. We do not eat people, we eat cattle, and only attack when we or our nest and friends are threatened." Showing off his angered expression that he rarely conveyed, Jin continued, "I know I ate some of your cows, chickens, and horses to survive growing up, and I apologize for that, but that was what I needed to live. And regardless of what people and yourself want you to believe, I did not devour your parents."

Hearing the sorrow and rising anger in his tone and knowing how he felt about humans slandering his kind made Neda furrow her brow before avoiding his gaze. She wanted to apologize but a part of her refused to form those words. The farm girl wanted to blame someone for her parent's death and the nagas she had blamed for the years she had grown up. But this one, deep down, she knew wouldn't lie to her. All of his truths were written down in a diary that Jin didn't expect for her to encounter and for her to read them all.

Jin placed his hand upon her cheek to make her look into his cobalt colored eyes. "Neda, it's **me**…the man you knew and loved for the year we got to know one another. I am just in a different body. Can you not accept that regardless of all the fairy tales you were told as a child?"

If there was any part of him that was still there, it was his big, innocent eyes that continued to stare back at her. Feeling the warmth of his hand on her tanned cheek, Neda placed her own upon his before closing her eyes tightly shut so the tears wouldn't come forth. "Jin…I cannot love you…" She found herself pulling away from the demon, not able to look at him much longer. "All of this was different when I thought you were human. I didn't expect you to be the one thing I hated and feared!"

Jin hummed in thought, wrapping his serpent tail about Neda's wrist gently. "Lily knew who I was," he said softly. "She guessed what Touya and I were the moment we slithered into her house in Eytheria Market Town." He sighed at having to remember the human woman he really cared for. "I wish she had reconsidered."

"That's why you blindfolded me when you took me to Touya," Neda recalled that moment when she had injured her ankle. "You didn't want me to notice he was a snake demon. You wanted me to trust he wouldn't hurt me."

He scratched an annoying itch in his wild, red hair. "Mhmm. He has the ability to control ice while I can control wind. We're one of the few demons who can control elements. Kurama, Hiei, and Shishi all could as well. All the other demons don't have many powers, which I know of. I am sure they have passed down theirs to their children though, and I would have more than the five if Silver wasn't killed by the knights Thane was accompanied with." He didn't like talking about that topic, as he was at that point where he didn't harbor ill will towards the knight completely. "Besides, there is also your baby I have in mind."

Neda looked down at her round stomach to place her hand there. "This child…is going to be a half-breed, isn't it?" She witnessed as Jin shrugged to show he either didn't know or didn't want to tell her. "It is, isn't it? That potion only modified what you truly are. It didn't make you completely human. You still passed down what you really are."

"I still am not sure where these coming days and nights may go," Jin admitted honestly, still thinking back on the reading he was given those many months ago. "All I know is that I will try my best to protect you both no matter what it takes." When the young woman reached for him, Jin couldn't help but duck away from her this time. "I should get back to my nest. Touya doesn't want me to be here for too long."

"Jin…I…" Neda couldn't find the words in time, as the naga quickly dashed from her side. Feeling him slip from her, she sat down in the rocking chair with her head in her hands. It was hard for her to think about what to do next.


	36. Chapter 36

Touya brought his hands to his head with a heavy sigh at hearing Jin's story involving the past year he was there. "I thought the whole purpose of this was to explain to the two girls that you weren't the killer of their parents. I was unaware that you were going there to fall in love with the one girl who would love to see you dead!"

"I told you, I didn't have this all planned out!" Jin grumbled, lying down on his front with his tail curled up about his body. He felt miserable having to leave Neda behind. "But I am not done yet. I have to still go back there and be there when my child is born."

"Jin!" Touya scolded angrily, not wanting the demon to return back for anything. "You've already caused a riot. Do you seriously want to go back and cause more trouble for yourself?"

"I know you're trying to look out for me, Touya, but I am sorry. I have other things that need to be done." Jin's serpent body began to unravel slowly to reveal where he was hiding his face. "Do you think you could manage to get in contact with Kurama?"

Touya threw his hands up in defeat. "Why do I even bother? Everything I say to you goes through one ear and out the other!" Slithering towards one of the nearby trees sheltering them from harm, he looked about the area to make sure no human was nearby. "I can try and find him, but what do you need Kurama for?"

"I don't trust any human to deliver that child," Jin admitted, as he rested against one of the nearby trees with a heavy sigh. "If they find out it is a half-breed, they will have it killed. I cannot risk that."

"So you're going to drag Neda away to birth this child?" Touya couldn't help but find something wrong with Jin's plan, but he wasn't about to say anything regarding it out loud. "Alright, I will go hunt down Kurama and tell him about the situation. I just really hope you know what you're doing."

Finishing her dinner for the next night, Neda walked over to the dinning room table to eat. She picked apart the chicken she had on her plate only to look about the room to find it lonely without anybody there to keep her company. Tossing a part of the chicken back down on her plate, she ran her fingers through her hair with an added sigh. Hearing a knock at her door, Neda tossed down her napkin to make it over to the front entrance to open the wooden door. "Thane…?" She wondered, a bit confused. Never would the knight ever show up without her sister. "What are you doing here?" She stood aside to let the young man through.

"I have just come here to warn you, Neda," Thane began with worry, as he entered the farmhouse. "Since that uproar at the ball, everyone knows that you two were together. They are worried about that baby you are now holding inside of you."

"What does that mean…?" Neda asked nervously, not liking the tone of his voice.

"It means that they want you to kill it when it is born," Thane responded with a sorrowful sigh. "I am so sorry."

"That's a horrible thing for them to suggest!" Neda growled, pounding her fist down on the table she was previously eating at. "You know me, Thane, and I don't like nagas as much as anybody, but I could never blame this child for what he's about to be!"

"If that child is born and is seen about town, people are going to kill it!" It wasn't within Thane to demand such a thing, but he worried the kind of life that the child would be born into and the hell Neda would be given for keeping it. "Look, I am only thinking of the two of you. I know it is a cruel thing to ask, but you have to do something!"

Neda placed her hands upon her round stomach before making it to the nearby window. "If things become too much, I know of one person who can watch over the child." She was thinking about Kurama, knowing that he was watching over the five babies Jin had to leave behind when he was exiled from trying to watch over Neda. "He sacrificed a lot for me…and because of my hatred for their kind that I have been raised on, it is just hard to think some of them actually have a heart."

"I am sure the serpent demons think the same about humans," Thane remarked, as he sat down at the dinning room table. "I still cannot believe I was there when his wife got killed. That explains his first reaction to me so much."

"Yeah, he did blame you quite a bit," Neda said, thinking about the diary that the demon had let her read earlier. "He said it felt like you could have stopped them from killing her."

"Well," Thane began with a shrug, "I wasn't aware that your mother wanted him to watch over you. I seriously thought that they had kidnapped you and were planning on killing you." He fidgeted a bit with the square cloth, which hung over different parts of the round table. "Like you, I didn't know much about them. I only thought they were killers."

Neda twiddled with the red necklace she had unknowing made out of the demon's dried scales. "I wish I had known that as well, but my mother died before I got the chance to say even goodbye to her." Wanting to see Jin again, Neda turned around to Thane. "Take me to Jin."

"Why are you asking this of me?" Thane asked with a light, sarcastic chuckle. "I don't know where he went to."

"I know in your line of duty under the king, you were all taught to track and destroy demons after that night," Neda explained, joining Thane at the table. She grabbed some more of the chicken to feed herself a bit more. "I have no doubt you'll be able to find Jin's nest and where he is hiding. I want you to take me there."

Thane was trained in that line of work, but he never used it often. He didn't want to go looking for trouble in fear of losing in a fight against one. Not many came back alive after hunting for the demons. "Alright," Thane said with a sigh at Neda's determination. He pushed himself up from the table. "I'll be waiting outside while you finish eating. I don't want you going there hungry."

"Thank you, Thane," Neda said, as the knight left her in peace to finish her meal. Just thinking about confronting him again in demon form made her really nervous, as she picked through her food quickly.

Jin waited eagerly for Touya to return with some news regarding Kurama's whereabouts. He had no doubt that the nest probably uprooted from where they last were after that last attack on Shishi's nest. Hearing the disturbance of the bushes, Jin snapped his attention to the trees up ahead to watch as they jostled about to show something was coming his way. He was hopeful it was Touya only to find the smell of iron heavy. Hissing lowly, he backed away to hide best he could amongst the bushes and trees surrounding him.

Thane made his way into the woods to find Jin and Touya's nest sure enough. "Jin, I am no fool. I know you're here." He knew the demon was somewhere nearby given the hissing he could hear almost resonating around him. "I am not here to hurt you. I want to talk to you first before dragging Neda in here."

The redhead slowly pulled himself from where he was hiding in the bushes to make himself known to the knight. "I will hold you to that," the demon mentioned nervously. He made sure to make himself look intimidating by towering over Thane on his serpent half. "What do you want to talk about?"

"Jeez, you are big," Thane mentioned, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. He watched as Jin crossed his arms over his chest with his mouth twisted to the side to show he wasn't amused. "I just wanted you to know that I was sorry for what I did to your mate. I didn't mean for any of that to happen. I just thought you were going to kill Neda. I couldn't let that happen."

"I had to watch their mother die in my arms several seasons ago," Jin explained, hating to look back on that night. "We were just going in there to eat our share in food, but the father came in and startled us. He had a lantern with him, and when he dropped it, it caught the barn on fire. I tried to get them out, but I couldn't in time." He opened his palms to think back on when Pearl was lying in his arms. "She begged me then and there to watch over her children no matter what, but they didn't trust me. So I found Lily, and you came onto the farm. Regardless, I still tried to keep my promise, and I did the best I could."

Thane was quiet, as he listened to Jin's side of the story. "You even got your mate killed because of it, and you lost your children, so I heard." He moved a bit closer to the redhead, watching as Jin's blue eyes kept upon his movements. "I am sorry for everything that has happened, Jin. During the year I got to know you, I know that you would never harm anybody unless they threatened you or the people you love." Thane opened his hand to the wind master. "Forgive me."

Jin eyed the opened hand seriously before offering a smile to the knight to accept his hand. "All demons are not bad. I wish your kind could see that."

"I wish the same," Thane said before pulling back from the handshake. "Wait right here. Neda is waiting to see you."

Staying put, he watched as the knight disappeared back into the bushes and trees to reappear with Neda. He didn't hesitate to come closer to her only to watch her withdraw from him nervously. Jin frowned at her actions sorrowfully. "You still do not trust me, I see."

"It isn't that I don't trust you," Neda answered quietly between them. "I am just not used to you…I never thought that the demon I had held such anger towards would be the man I would fall in love with in a period of one year." She nervously reached for his arm to feel of the scales on the back.

"Speaking of my scales," Jin looked down at the necklace she had made out of his scales. "You do know now where you got those now, don't you?" He touched the glistening items of his that she had strung together for her necklace. "You got those from me right before I shed my skin."

Neda placed her hand upon Jin's to hold it close to herself. "I guess I always had a part of you close to me." Not able to hide back her emotions anymore, Neda moved in closer to hug the demon tightly. Her head rested upon his abdomen to hide the tears, which were about to escape from her eyes. "Everyone knows what this baby is going to be. They want me to kill it."

"They don't have to do that!" Jin grumbled, holding Neda close. "They could let the child live out in the wild with other snake demons if it shows so much as being part of one!" He gently pushed Neda back, so he could look within her eyes. "I asked Touya to bring Kurama here, so he should be here any minute. You could have this baby out here in the wild. Nobody will know. I will take care of it, and I will stop by the farm as often as I can."

Thane kept a lookout on the outskirts of the forest while Neda and Jin continued to talk to one another. Noticing the grazing Rose, he walked over to the mare to stroke her fur gently in attempts to keep her company. As he was doing so, he noticed something in the distance. Squinting his eyes, Thane realized that it was a group of knights heading towards him. "Oh Great Goddess," he inhaled sharply, throwing the reins to the saddle horn before mounting on the creature to go out to meet them. On his way there, he witnessed the ice master and Kurama not too far away. "Tell Jin and Neda they have to get out of here! The knights are on their way!"

Kurama turned his head to find that, indeed, five or so knights were coming towards Jin and Touya's nesting site. "Dear God…" he breathed in disbelief. "Let's go!"

When Touya managed to make it through to where Jin and Neda were, he could hear them talking about how and where to have the child they had conceived. "You two have to get out of here!" He demanded, tossing about the branches to get to where he was supposed to go to the center of the nest. "Knights are on their way here. I have no doubt they are out demon hunting, and if they find Neda here, they will probably kill her too just for having a demon child!"

"What!" Jin exclaimed, as he moved from Neda to see for himself what was indeed going on beyond the woods. "What are they doing here? How did they find us!"

With all of the panic and stress getting to Neda, she found pain striking her body. Placing her hand on her stomach, she nearly fell to her knees. "J-Jin…? Whether you want it to or not, right now I am about to have this baby…!"

"I thought humans held babies for several seasons!" Touya exclaimed in wonder, knowing that Thane wouldn't be able to hold off the knights for very long.

"Sometimes stress and other things can cause a change in plans," Kurama explained in demonic to the other demons. He hurried over towards the woman to keep her steady and under control. "We cannot move her. It is too risky. If the knights come while she is about to give birth, well, we have to let them come."

"You're crazy!" Jin growled angrily, not wishing to think that was their only option.

"Esmond!" Thane exclaimed, as he finally rode up beside the knight he had known. "What are you doing way out here?" He kept the mare in a steady pace next to Esmond's armored steed.

"I could ask you the same thing, my friend." The way Esmond stretched the word 'friend' was seen more as an insulting term than anything to anybody within the group. "My comrades and I were tracking the stench of demon and happen to be heading in this direction."

"There is nothing out here!" Thane insisted, wanting to deter Esmond from going any further into the woods. "I have already looked!" The nervous knight added.

Esmond halted his steed and the troops following behind him closely. He looked at Thane suspiciously. "Is there something you are hiding from us? You seem awfully jumpy tonight." Seeing Thane open his mouth to speak, the fellow knight couldn't help but be reminded of something else. "Also, I hope you told that woman to kill the bastard growing within her stomach." Here, he unsheathed his sword to show the blade upon the moonlight. "Because if she doesn't, the Goddess knows I will."

Thane felt rage boiling within him at having to hear such an outrageous statement. "That is not for you to decide! That baby belongs to Neda, and what she decides to do with it is her own affair—not yours!"

"I've heard enough of your romantic dribble!" Esmond yelled angrily, putting his sword away. "If there is nothing up ahead then you would have no problem with us looking again."

Just as Thane was about to demand otherwise, he felt a tremendous chill rise within the air. Looking back down towards the outskirts of the woodland area, he saw a patch of ice racing towards the knights as if it were alive. He himself wasn't sure what was going on, so he moved Rose out of the way to watch as the other knights' horses were frozen in place.

Esmond angrily looked down to find the source—the ice demon, Touya. The demon was looking at him, appearing rather angry that they would dare come so close to his home. "It is one of those damn creatures who has special abilities!" He yelled to the others, unsheathing his sword before dismounting his horse. "Kill that thing!"

With the other knights coming at him, Touya quickly moved his right hand to direct the ice to freeze the oncoming men. "You will all lose your power to fight me in my ice," he warned them in English. Touya narrowed his eyes with a smirk upon his face. "It can suck the energy right out of your bodies."

"You can't keep us incased in here forever, you beast!" Esmond yelled, throwing his sword at the demon straight on.

Touya knew if he released his hold on the humans, they wouldn't hesitate to attack and try to kill him. However, he had to avoid the sword coming for him. It caused Touya to move off to the side, making him lose his focus on his attack, allowing the knights to run free momentarily. Regaining his composure, after the sharp blade nearly did away with his head, the ice master managed to recapture them within his demonic ice just a few feet away from actually reaching him.

"Whatever is back there, demon, you cannot protect it forever," Esmond warned, as he reached for his bow and arrows.

Hearing the attacks from up front put Jin and Kurama on edge. "I don't think Touya was able to keep the men in iron at bay," Kurama pointed out to Jin in demonic before turning to the farm woman. He placed his palm upon her sweaty forehead to try and calm her a bit. "Soon she will have this baby out, but Neda will be weak."

Jin looked over his shoulder, as he could hear the knights cutting through the woods just to find them. "They are headed this way…!" Gathering his thoughts, he motioned for Kurama to move. "I can handle it from here. You have the ability to hold them off without killing them."

Kurama moved aside, letting Jin take over in his place. He watched as the wind demon supported Neda's head with his serpent body, allowing the rest to keep her protected. "I'll hold them off best I can. Just tell her to push every now and again. That should do the trick." Standing just a few feet away, Kurama used his abilities to beckon the trees to intertwine their branches together to create a thick, almost unbreakable barrier for when the knights finally showed their faces.

Esmond wasn't amused to find another obstacle in his path. "So, there are two more of you." Noticing Neda curled up within the coils of the other redhead, he couldn't help but smirk. "Everything I need is here in one spot, I see." Using his sword, he began to work best he could to bring down the tree branches blocking his way best he could. "Give it up, you pitiful beast! Either way, you will all die here tonight."

"You cannot slice through tough branches," Kurama insisted in broken English, keeping his barrier up. "You be here all night."

Jin growled angrily at the persistent knights wanting to take someone else from him. "And even if you do make it through Kurama's barrier, I won't hesitate to kill you. Be thankful I am showing you the generosity you never once showed me." He eyed the men with a rising fury within him.

Thane hurried back through the woods with the ice master following behind him quickly. Making it back near Jin and Neda, he looked to see that the plant master had the knights all locked up with an entanglement of tree branches. "My word…" he gasped, watching the display. Another sound broke the knight's concentration on Kurama's actions—it was the sound of a baby crying. He hurried over towards Neda and Jin, knowing that the wind demon wouldn't know what to do with the umbilical cord. "Give it to me. I can cut the cord on it."

Jin was hesitant, but he did as the knight asked. "Snake demon babies don't have that strange thing on them when they are born. Most are born in a shell or born without one if the shell breaks within the mother."

"It is normal for human babies," Thane said, as he used his sword to cut the cord as it was to be cut. He noticed the gender right away. "It is a boy." He saw that the small child had very little hair at the moment, so it was hard to determine the color of it. It did have pointed ears and some scales on the back of its body to show he wouldn't fit into human society at the best of times during the warmer months.

Smiling in relief that his child was okay, he let Neda take the small boy back into her arms before leaning down to nuzzle against her cheek. "I never thought I would see the day where I could actually witness one of my children being born and spend my days with him," he whispered between the three of them.

Neda wasn't all too worried about the child's demonic appendages at that moment. All she cared about was that moment she had with her own family. She held the child close to her body lovingly, resting her cheek upon his head. "What are we going to name him?"

As the two continued to converse with one another, Esmond readied a bow and aimed the arrow through the only opening he had while Kurama wasn't paying attention. He aimed the arrow directly at Neda and the baby, intent on killing them both with one shot. "Say goodbye, you traitorous wench!" He growled to himself before releasing the arrow.

Hearing the weapon slicing through the wind, Jin turned around to see the arrow heading towards the woman he loved and his newborn son. "**NO**!" He yelled angrily, getting in the way of it. His back facing the projectile, he felt the head of the arrow pierce through his upper back, causing him severe pain.

Neda watched in horror as the other knights followed in Esmond's steps by firing their arrows as well, causing several more to pierce through Jin's thick, demonic skin. "**JIN**!" She screamed in horror, watching the demon continue to take the arrows for her sake.

Before Thane could intervene with his shield and sword, he witnessed as Jin turned slowly around with blood trickling down the naga's mouth. The knight had never seen the demon so angry before. He was paralyzed by his own fear to make any movement.

Jin wasn't about to take anymore. Calling his powers, his eyes went completely white as he beckoned to a strong wind current, causing blades of grass to be so deadly that it would slice through the iron and skin of the knights that dared attack him and his family. When Kurama moved out of the way, Jin raised his hand to call down a cyclone, which engulfed the attacking knights within it to send them flying to their deaths.

Thane, Touya, and Kurama all watched in disbelief at the power Jin usually refrained from using unless for a specific reason. When the wind currents settled, Touya heard Jin collapse to the ground. "Jin!" Everyone exclaimed.

"Jin!" Neda said in worry, seeing the demon was wounded several times by the arrows now sticking out of his back. She could see the blood escaping from the wind demon's mouth, making her worried for his life. "Jin, you shouldn't have done that…" Neda expressed in tears, as she placed her palm upon his cheek.

The wind master smiled best he could through his labored breathes, in his painful attempt to stay alive. "I did all that I did, because I loved you. I didn't want to come all this way just to lose you," he expressed honestly. Jin hissed in dismay, as he felt Kurama pull one of the arrows out of his back, as they had not pierced through Jin's skin. "Neda, I am still so sorry for everything."

Never had Neda ever witnessed the wind master cry before, but she caught the tears of regret he was shedding within the moonlight. "Shhh," she whispered to the wind demon, stroking his wild, red hair. "Jin, you need to stop talking. If you keep talking, you're going to lose your energy."

Jin slowly closed his eyes with a shaky breath. "I love you, Neda," he almost whispered.

"I love you too, Jin," Neda replied, resting against the large wind demon. While Kurama continued to remove the arrows from the wind demon's back, Neda cried against Jin's weak form feeling that he may not make it through the night given how many times he was struck.


	37. Chapter 37

**Six Years Later**

The summer air was warm and welcoming that year, as Neda let the wind come through the windows she had opened. Catching the time, she finished up with lunch before making it slowly to the front door. Her hair tossed about on the tranquil wind, as she looked out the front yard of the farmhouse. "Juro," Neda called out before making her way down the porch stairs to get a better look about the farm. "Juro, where are you?"

Not finding him out back, Neda made her way to the front where the dirt road was, as well as the same tree where her parents' graves were. She noticed that Juro was there by the tree talking to someone. Not sure who it was at first, Neda hurried quickly to her son's side. Making it to the tree, she saw that the ice demon, Touya, was coiled up there talking to the young boy. "Oh, Goddess," she breathed, placing her hand upon her chest. "Touya, I thought you were someone else."

"I am sorry," the ice master apologized. "I just thought I would stop by today." He looked back at Juro, the son of Jin and Neda. The six year old had auburn colored hair, which almost looked like Jin's given how wild it appeared. His eyes were as green as his mother's, and the scales that were on the back of his arms, legs, and back were red. Touya could see the scales on his arms from the short sleeve shirt the boy was wearing. He moved his serpent tail over to Juro to bring the half-demon closer to him.

Neda smiled a bit, as she squatted down to get a better view of her son. She had picked the name of him out from a list of names Kurama thought might suit him. "Is there any news on Jin?"

Touya looked up at the sky before eyeing Neda once more. "He may return someday," he answered vaguely, as he himself wasn't sure. "That is up to whatever or whoever is ruling up there. Somehow, I have a feeling he may return."

She watched as Juro leaned in against the ice master's scaly half to get comfortable, almost for a nap. Neda smiled, reaching over to stroke the boy's hair tenderly when Touya moved his serpent body about Juro's protectively. "I keep having this dream at night," Neda admitted over the tranquil breeze. "I dream that Jin comes to me, to my room, from a bright light." She knew it sounded silly and just shrugged. "I am probably just wishing for the impossible."

"Maybe," Touya answered truthfully. "But then again, the higher power acts in mysterious ways, so I've heard."

Neda reached over for Juro to take him back within her arms. "I have lunch ready. Why won't you come in for a bit?"

When Touya was about to decline the offer, Juro reached out to the demon with his arms. "Come inside," the small boy insisted. "You need food too."

Touya chuckled to himself at Juro's insistence. He uncoiled his serpent half to steady himself upon it. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt." Following behind Neda and Juro, he made his way inside of the farmhouse to be greeted by the smell of fresh chicken and fish. "By the way," he began, as he closed the door, "Dustin might come by later today to see Juro."

Neda had gotten to know whom Dustin and his group was after the news of Jin's passing passed around. The demon had come to see Jin's body before he was buried. She felt bad for the alpha, when he mourned over Jin's body—it was almost like a father unable to accept the loss of his son. "I will remember that," Neda said, as she gave Touya a plate of food after helping her son with one. "I never knew who Dustin was until that night he came to see Jin's body."

"Dustin was our alpha for so long," Touya said, remembering those days quite well. "He just couldn't afford to put his own nest at risk over what Jin had to do. It didn't mean when he exiled Jin he didn't care." The ice master began to pull apart his chicken to eat at it. "He was just worried over everyone else and couldn't risk losing everyone."

"How are Kurama and Juro's half-siblings doing? I haven't seen them yet this year." At least once a year, usually, Kurama would allow the other children belonging to Jin and Silver to come see Juro. He felt it was only fair, as they were all related through their father. Hearing Juro soon beckon to her, she looked over at her son to find him trying to give her some of his food. "Eat your lunch, sweetie," she ordered kindly.

"They are alright, as far as I know," Touya answered, as he finished his chicken to move onto the fish on his plate. "Seeing as I was banished from their clans, I haven't been able to talk to them up close without being chased off. When I am able, I just pull Kurama off to the side when everyone is asleep. I haven't been in a nest for a good while."

Neda couldn't help but feel bad for Touya's placement. "Touya," she began a bit nervously, "why don't you stay here until you find a better place out there?"

"I couldn't do that," Touya assured her, withdrawing his hand from his lunch plate. "If knights come by here and see me, they will kill me and possibly you and Juro. I couldn't risk both of your lives."

"Don't be silly," Neda said, as she grabbed up her own plate and Touya's, once they were clean, to head over to the sink. "The knights don't come down this way much anymore. As far as everyone is concerned, Juro died that night that the knights killed Jin, so they have no reason to come snooping."

"If you insist," Touya said, removing himself from the dinning room table. "I was able to handle being out with just Jin but not by myself." When he saw Juro was done, the ice demon picked up the half-breed to hold within his arms. He watched as the young boy yawned and stretched, showing he was ready to go out like a light. "He's tired. I will take him to bed." Holding the baby close to him, Touya made his way to the stairs. "I am going to lie down with him for a bit. It has been a long day."

Neda nodded with a smile, letting Touya do as he pleased. "Sleep well, the both of you." She watched the two disappear upstairs before finishing up with the cleaning of the table downstairs.

With Touya and Juro sleeping upstairs, Neda remained about the house. She could never find it within herself to ever nap or sleep until her body gave out. Often she would find she was overwhelmed with thoughts of Jin. Looking out at the setting sun through one of the nearby windows, Neda sighed to herself. "Please come back to me, Jin," she whispered to herself, placing her fingers upon the necklace made out of his scales.

Thinking back on her son and Touya, she turned around to head up the staircase slowly to make it to her parents' old bedroom she had claimed as her own lately. She quietly opened the door to let herself inside. Neda smiled at seeing Touya curled up on the covers with the six-year-old Juro napping contently against the metallic looking sky-blue scales. Moving closer to the bed, Neda moved the covers backwards, closer to the two on the bed.

Touya could feel the covers move upon his cold form. Opening his eyes, he looked over at the weary widow. "You should sleep sometime," he whispered, so as not to wake Juro. "You cannot keep walking around until your body says 'enough'."

Neda waved away the idea with a smile. "Your thoughts are kind, dear friend, but I will be fine."

Moving the tip of his tail, Touya wrapped it about Neda's wrist gently. "You cannot keep waiting for a miracle to come back to you. Especially, when you have a miracle right here." He removed his tail from where it was to move it back where it was near Juro.

"Thank you," Neda whispered, moving in to kiss Touya upon his forehead. She cupped the demon's cheeks within her palms. "Thank you for being here as well."

Touya merely smiled, as he lowered his head back down on the bed covers beneath him towards the foot of the bed.

She knew it was best to leave the demon and her son alone until they had the energy to continue. Neda removed herself from the bedroom shortly after speaking with Touya to make her way back down the steps slowly. Moving to the cupboard, she pulled out a cup, so that she could make hot tea to calm herself a bit. As Neda was doing so, she heard another knock on the door. She moved the curtains aside to look to see who it was before rushing to the door to open it. "Kurama, I haven't seen you in awhile. What are you doing here?"

Kurama smiled up at the woman. "I am sorry for not being here sooner." His English had gotten a bit better, as he had studied the language over the years. "But this season has been a bit crazy. I am afraid I cannot stay long, however," he added, remaining on the porch for the time being. "I just came by to say I would be back tomorrow with Jin's other five children. They can have a play time with Juro by them."

Neda nodded with a brief smile. "I am sure Juro will appreciate that. Thank you, Kurama."

Just as he was about to leave, he pulled a rose form his long, flowing red hair to give to Neda as a parting gift. "I will return tomorrow." With that said, Kurama made his leave quickly to head back to his nest.

Shutting the door, Neda made her way over to the vase she kept in the center of the dinning room table to add the rose to the collection Kurama often gave her. He always gave her a rose every year that he came to visit her. There were seven total, to include the one rose he gave her that night he was injured. She smiled at the growing collection before heading to the sofa to relax momentarily.

When the sun had set for the night, Neda made sure that Juro was still fast asleep after Touya had lied him down to rest earlier for bed. Kissing her son goodnight, she made sure he was tucked into the large bed she often slept within herself. With the young boy out for the day, she turned to Touya with a nod. "I cannot thank you enough for being here with him as you have. With Jin gone…he needs someone."

"I did a lot for Jin," said Touya with a shrug. "Some of it I wanted to kill him for ever asking it of me, but I will say I am happy to do this thing for him regardless of how long he is gone." The ice master pointed over towards the bed. "You should sleep too. You've been up real early."

"I will consider it," Neda said with a light chuckle. "Why don't you go ahead and sleep in my old bedroom? I don't mind. You can keep it as your new room for now." She made sure Touya made it to the bedroom alright before shutting the door to her new room to keep her son company through the night till she fell asleep. Finding the exhaustion catching up with her, Neda closed her eyes to drift off to sleep herself.

A bright light shining just at the foot of the bed, Neda moaned softly, wondering what could possibly be causing such a thing. Opening her eyes, she stared through the light best she could to find someone standing within the light. "It…it can't be…!" She exclaimed quietly to herself.

Making his way out of the light, Jin made his way over towards Neda in his demon form. He reached his hand out to her with a bright smile. "Neda," he whispered between them. "I have come back for you."

Neda's eyes shined with tears, as she looked at the redhead in disbelief. "It…you're alive…!" She hurried to the foot of the bed to hug the demon tightly. "If this is a magnificent dream, let it just last a bit longer."

Jin smiled, as he stroked her hair lovingly. "Regardless of what it is," he whispered between them, "I am just thankful to be here…back home where I belong with my family."

THE END 


	38. Endnotes

The endnote section—yay—a moment where I get to ramble about the story.

I decided to work on a story like this after the idea dawned upon me a few years ago when I was in my BUS102 or so class. I drew a picture of Jin as a snake demon, eyeing the 'unknown OC' at the time, drawing at a tree. It was from there, I dabbled a little bit and even wrote a snippet from the story (that was used within the story—it was the part where Neda claimed Jin was going to eat her and what a liar he was), and after watching The Little Mermaid, I had to go through with it.

I apologize if people view Jin as being completely OOC, but to be fair, Jin and Touya and all the other minor characters in YYH aren't really given that much of a back story line to flow on that I feel it is fair that you can be as whimsical as you want with their personalities. You do hardly see them much, and who is to say how they act is right or wrong; especially, if situations are different from what they are in the anime? I do know that Jin is a carefree and happy kind of guy, but he strikes me as, not only a noble person after he fights with Yusuke, but also a bit of a child if he cannot have things his way. Also, it was stated that Jin was almost the age of a child when Lily first found him, meaning, he wasn't going to act like an adult—thus some of his childlike attitudes he displays within the story AKA crying, acting submissive to older figures, ect.

Also, I apologize if some people were fixated on the fact he was ever Irish in this story. When I said he came from the east, it meant, he came from Japan. Not once was it ever to suggest that he was Irish. Yes, he is Irish in the English dub, but he is also Northern Japanese in the subtitled version.

The ending of the story could mean anything, by the by. It could mean Neda was dreaming again or Jin returned, as the Gods/Koenma or whoever was merciful enough to give him that chance. It is all up to the readers to kind of decide whichever they want.

The reason I made them into snake demons was because, duh, I love snakes/nagas. They are the most epic things ever!

And yes, Chaos, I do love the whole Cinderella midnight kind of magic. XD Hehe I felt it would be perfect for this story, which was loosely based off of a Disney film.

The things that changed within the story were: Lily's placement within it. At first, I was going to have her remain in Eytheria Castle Town even after 12 years went by. When Neda was going to be 'going out' with Jin in human form, she was going to drop by the blind woman's house to show off Jin and have Lily be confused as to what occurred with the demon.

Lily was also not supposed to die. She was supposed to be there with Jin when the knights converged upon his nesting site while Neda was in labor. She was supposed to be the one to preach about what a kind demon he was. However, her death was to bring Neda and Jin closer together.

Norris was also supposed to be there at Jin's side, almost to insinuate that Jin already had his 'nest' full of people he loved—Norris, Neda, and Lily. But I withdrew the thought as Neda wanted Jin to be monogamous.

Kurama wasn't supposed to be there to block the knights from reaching Jin and Neda. Jin was supposed to ward them off himself with threatening hisses and such while Neda gave birth to their son. After the child was born, the knights were going to attack the child only to ram Jin through with a sword, when the demon intervenes, and kill him instantly.

Jin wasn't supposed to leave Cormac Farm after the incident that occurred 12 years ago. He was supposed to be there to watch Neda grow up into a woman and, over time, fall in love with her. The love for her was supposed to be what drove him to transforming into a human. However, I felt that his desire to be heard on behalf of the demon race was good enough.

It was supposed to be winter the night Jin transformed back into a demon—not summer. In the snippet I made, Neda actually bundled up because of the cold, winter air.

Jin and Neda were actually supposed to have a night of passion after their conversation on the porch to have her experience that form of love making in Jin's demon form. I was just in such a rush to finish the story, after it had been out for so many years, I didn't bother with it. Maybe when I add a bit more to it later in my life, haha, before printing it out, I will add that back in. I don't know. If I do or not, it won't meet public eyes, I am sure.

Thane and Silver were created on a whim. I never expected Thane to play a supporting role within the story, or Silver to have an impact on Jin. (Can you tell I just fly by the seat of my pants? XB) When I did create, Thane, however, I did picture the moment where the two (Jin and Thane) would become close friends after being at odds with one another.

I appreciate all of you who stuck with the story. It meant a great deal to me. I was so eager to finish this one up, because I had so much time to do it while I am in the process of job hunting. Suffice to say, I am trying to get these fics done, so that I can actually work on novels. I think I've done fanfics for enough time and they, as well as you all, have given me enough motivation to work on my own worlds. 8)

Thank you all once again! Now to work on Wind Knoll's Curse! W00t!

~Oreana


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